ALL SEAHORSE SPECIES IN THE WORLD, seahorse types sea life

ALL SEAHORSE SPECIES IN THE WORLD
Name
The Latin name for seahorse is Hippocampus which means “Horse Caterpillar”

Diet
Seahorses eat small crustacea such as Mysis Shrimp. An adult eats 30-50 times a day. Seahorse fry (baby seahorses) eat a staggering 3000 pieces of food per day.
What is a seahorse?
Seahorses are fish. They live in water, breath through gills and have a swim bladder. However they do not have caudal fins and have a long snake-like tail. They also have a neck and a snout that points down.
British Seahorses
There are two species around British Coastline, the Spiny Seahorse (Hippocampus Guttulatus) and the Short Snouted Seahorse (Hippocampus Hippocampus).

Both British Seahorses can be found from the Shetland Isles MAINLY down the west coast of the UK (and all around Ireland) and along the south coast of England; we also have sightings of Seahorses on the east coast and a few years ago they were found in the North Sea and across the Channel in France
Snout
Seahorses have long thin snouts enabling them to probe into nooks and crannies for food. When they find food they suck it up through their snouts like a vacuum cleaner. Their snouts can expand if their prey Is larger than the snout. They are not able to chew and have to disintegrate the food as they eat it.
Eyesight
Seahorses have excellent eyesight and their eyes are able to work independently on either side of their head. This means they can look forwards and backwards at the same time! This is particularly useful as they hunt for food by sight.
Courtship
It was always thought that Seahorses pair for life but research by The Seahorse trust has shown that pair bonding is just for a few months or a season at a time. They meet first thing in the morning to reinforce their pair bonding with an elaborate courtship display. The female meets the male in his territory and as they approach each other, they change colour. The male circles around the female and the pair often spiral around an object. This display can last for up to an hour. Once over the female goes back to her territory.

Territory
Females have a territory of about 100 sq metres and males have a territory of about 0.5 sq metres. Their territories overlap.