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Article: The last roundup? Seahorses struggle for survival.
- Article from:
- E Magazine
- Article date:
- September 1, 2004
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2004 Earth Action Network, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Seahorses may have the best love fives of any fish in the ocean. These delicate, swirled-tail members of the syngnathid family (pipefish, sea dragons) are frequently depicted in mythology, rapturously entwined.
Each morning just after dawn, seahorses participate in a courtship ritual in which the two mates intertwine their tails and "dance," and most species stay faithful to their partners for life. In their bizarre form of reproduction, the male is the one who gets pregnant, carrying the female's eggs in a small brood pouch for weeks before giving birth. But this millennia-old dance may soon be over, as seahorses are increasingly endangered.
Sadly, ...