Tuesday 30 August 2011

Seahorse reproduction

Is a seahorse a mammal or a fish? How does a seahorse reproduce?


The seahorse is a fish. Unlike most fish, it does not have scales. It has rectangular bony plates that cover its body. Seahorses do not have teeth and swallow their food whole with powerful suction through their snout. To hide from their predators, they grow long skin appendages so that they can blend in better among the algae and seaweeds.


Seahorse reproduction is unusual as the male is the one that becomes pregnant. During mating, the male and the female entwine their tails and the female connects a tube called an ovipositor to the male's pouch. After the eggs are moved into the male's pouch, the male will fertilise them. The fertilised eggs will hatch in the male's pouch.


The males are pregnant for several weeks before giving birth. When they prepare to give birth, the males undergo muscular contortions that last for about ten minutes. They will bend forward and backward. Then the brood leaves the male's pouch, one after another.




Watch this video that shows the male seahorse giving birth...



























Watch another video that is downloaded from the Internet...







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