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Pipefish
Family Syngnathidae |
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Pipefish
Hippichthys sp.
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Pipefishes
are sometimes seen in the seagrass lagoon and coral rubble area. They
are more often seen when it is dark. During the day, they remain well
hidden.
Pipefishes are true fish, although they don't appear very fish-like!
Pipefishes belong to the same family as seahorses. Their elongated
bodies are enclosed in an armour of bony rings just under the skin.
They also have an internal skeleton just like other fish. While most
retain a dorsal fin, in some pipefish species, the other fins are
small or absent.
Pipefishes are adapted for sheltered waters well vegetated with seagrass
or seaweed. With reduced fins and rather inflexible bodies, pipefishes
cannot swim quickly. Instead, they rely on camouflage to blend in
with the vegetation.
Piped food: Pipefishes feed on
minute creatures. These are sucked up with their tube-like, toothless
snouts.
Pipefish babies: Like the seahorse,
the male pipefish also carries the eggs. In some species, the male
has a pouch on the underside of his tail. For those without a pouch,
the eggs are glued to the underside of the male's tail or abdomen.
Often the eggs are embedded in a spongy tissue. Some have a pair of
flaps that fold over the eggs. Females have an ovipositor to lay eggs
on the male's body, where the eggs are then fertilised. In some species,
'pregnant' males may hang out together in small groups. The eggs develop
safely on dad's body. The father 'gives birth' to live young, which
emerge as miniatures of the adults.
Some pipefishes may perform courtship dances before mating. Unlike
seahorses, a mating pair of pipefishes may not remain faithful only
to each other. A female might lay her eggs on several males, and a
male might carry the eggs of several females.
Human uses: Pipefishes are used
in traditional Chinese medicine, often as a substitute for seahorses.
Some species are also caught for the live aquarium trade.
Status and threats: Pipefishes
are threatened by habitat disturbance and destruction from reclamation,
pollution and activities that increase sedimentation. Pipefishes are
also vulnerable to overharvesting. They are naturally uncommon because
they reproduce slowly and usually seldom travel far from one spot.
Usually, in the wild only a handful of babies survive from each batch
of eggs. Being slow swimmers without a free-swimming larval stage,
pipefishes don’t spread quickly to new places. Being slow-moving and
defenceless, they are easily collected. Pipefishes are threatened
with over-collection for the traditional Chinese medicine and live
aquarium trade. Like other fish and creatures harvested for the live
aquarium trade, most die before they can reach the retailers. Without
professional care, most die soon after they are sold. Those that do
survive are unlikely to breed successfully. |
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quick
facts
8-10cm, sometimes seen in the seagrass lagoon |
