A Horse of a Different Color
By Lisa Codianne Fowler
They change color, twine their tails together and look more like mythical beasts than fish. Wondrous creatures, seahorses have enchanted children of all ages for centuries. Mote's Seahorse Conservation Laboratory provides the rare opportunity to get up close and personal with these quirky critters. Learn about threats they face in the wild, see lined seahorses (Hippocampus erectus) and their adorable babies, or fry. You may even witness a little seahorse romance or spot a pregnant dad – yes, dad!
The Seahorse Conservation Lab is the newest addition to Mote’s research, conservation and educational efforts. In addition to showcasing and nurturing these fragile fish, it features fun and interesting facts about them. For example, did you know that male and female seahorses mate for life? Mote's seahorses mate each morning (if they've found their lifetime partner, that is). During mating, seahorse pairs usually change color to look alike. They do this by expanding or contracting special pigment-filled cells called "chromatophores." And male, not female, seahorses get pregnant. Females deposit their eggs into the male's special belly pouch, where the eggs are fertilized and protected. Lined seahorses typically have about 100 young at one time. Other species can have more than 500 and some have as few as 10 at a time.
If you go to see the new exhibit, you won't want to miss the two new eight-foot seahorse statues adorning the doorway leading from the Aquarium courtyard to the exhibit. These statues came to Mote from the Sarasota Quay that was demolished in 2007. Showcasing them there was made possible by Graham Interiors, Ball Construction, John and Deborah Dart and Ruden McClosky. The statues are replicas of the iconic seahorse statues that stood at the Lido Beach Casino for nearly 30 years.
Mote Aquarium has been breeding seahorses for years, but a recent donation from Ruden McClosky helped launch the transformation, though as yet incomplete, into this exciting exhibit. Mote continues to seek donations and corporate support to polish the project.
Vice President Dan Bebak puts it this way: "By growing the seahorses here, we help educate our visitors, provide animals for other aquariums and reduce the need to remove them from the wild for education purposes. That just makes perfect conservation sense. Before, our seahorse breeding facilities were largely inaccessible to the public. But now we're excited to spotlight these cool creatures and the excellent care they receive."
Lined seahorses are found on Southwest Florida's Gulf Coast. In addition to those that Mote Aquarium displays, it shares offspring with more than 20 AZA-accredited zoos and aquariums nationwide. In fact, nearly 40 percent of all lined seahorses on display at these facilities were born at Mote. In the wild, only an estimated one in 1,000 seahorses survives to adulthood. Many are caught accidentally as by-catch in shrimp fisheries. And each year, millions of seahorses are intentionally collected alive and dried - some sold as traditional Asian medicines; others sold as curios in souvenir shops. Through this trade, more than 25 million seahorses are consumed annually, causing concern that wild populations are becoming depleted and even endangered.
At Mote, easily 50 to 75 percent of the seahorses survive - that's quite astounding for a species that gives birth every 28 days or so - thanks to the superior care that aquarist and Mote seahorse keeper Shawn Garner provides. Though he’s only in his 20s, he can lay claim to being “a great-grandfather many times over.” Meet his family of fish at Mote’s extraordinary seahorse exhibit.
To learn more about The Seahorse Conservation Laboratory and other Mote exhibits and facilities, please visit www.mote.org.
Mote Aquarium is open 10 a.m. – 5 p.m., 365 days a year. Mote Members and children ages 3 and younger always get in free. Non-members pay $17 for adults; $16 for seniors (66+) and $10 for kids ages 4-12.
