Legend of the Sea Horse

The Legend of the Sea Horse

With a head shaped like a tiny prancing horse, in rigid bony plates and thorny spikes and a tail that curls like a snake, there is little about the sea horse to suggest that he really is a fish.  It swims upright with the aid of a single back fin.  With its tail curled around sea weed to keep from being swept away, it looks like a small dragon from some fairy tale.

One of the most curious agreements known to marine biologists is that between male and female.  The female puts her eggs into the male's front vest pocket, which resembles a kangaroo's pouch, so that the father instead of the mother carries the eggs about until they are hatched. They eat only live sea life such as plankton and the eggs of other sea creatures, smaller than themselves.  They are found in large numbers along Florida's seacoast.

Florida
2010