Lined seahorse

Photo: Robertson Ross · CC BY-NC-SA

Lined seahorses inhabit the seagrass beds and gorgonian fans of Pollard Bay, anchoring themselves with their prehensile tails and ambushing tiny crustaceans with rapid snout-suction that is among the fastest movements in the animal kingdom. They are monogamous during breeding seasons and engage in elaborate daily greeting dances that reinforce pair bonds. Males carry the eggs in a specialised brood pouch and give birth to live young after a gestation of 14 to 28 days, making them exceptional among fish for their reversed sex roles in reproduction.