Cross Breeds

Sea horses?

Ok i need to know how much water sea horses need! would 35 be ok? for how many?i heard they multiply fast is this true?any other things i need to know

Public Comments

1. If you plan on breeding sea horses I hope you know how much work it is! I had a friend who bred sea horses and he had to be home 24/7 in order to make sure they were fed often enough. Fortunately he worked from home so he was able to meet their needs. They were beautiful but he said they were an incredible amount of work to maintain in good health.
2. Actually you can fit quite a few sea horses in a tank that size. You can have a tank of 15-20 gallons and fit a dozen or so seahorses in it. Sea horses are one of the few types of marine fish that CAN live in cramped quarters since they don't move around much and don't need much swimming space. If they are kept in the right conditions, with plenty of filtration, and fed quite a bit, they probably could multiply fast. Usually only happy healthy fish will reproduce. The strange thing about them is that the females will lay her eggs in the males pouch, the male will then fertilize the eggs and carry them for up to 6 weeks, so bascially the male is the one who inpregnates the babies, weird huh. I would definitely keep doing alot of research to care for them though, since they are also a sensitive species having no scales or anything. They will need a constant supply of food during the day or they can become malnourished and become sick.
3. If you don't even know how many will fit in your tank, stop right now! Drop everything your doing, and do A LOT of research. Seahorses require MUCH more care than regular salt water fish, they are very delicate. Some people will try to say, "As long as you care for them right, they will thrive!" but don't get taken by that since it implies that taking care of them is even moderately easy. The statement is true, but misleading. First, they need much better water quality than most other fish, salt water fish are naturally more susceptible to water quality changes, but sea horses are more so. Second, amount of water is of less importance to how high the tank is- they are vertical swimmers so a taller tank is needed. Third, feeding seahorses that are not captive bred can be a challenge, since very often they will only accept live food, with maybe some frozen food mixed in. Training them to accept frozen food can be a trail, since not all will accept it ever. So be prepared to not only care for the horse, but also it's food- since they need to be fed about three times a day, maybe two. They eat small shrimps and other small fish. The food must also be varied and nutritious, so a mix of different creatures is needed. Fourth, Captive bred are more expensive, adding to an already expensive fish. But captive bred are much more hardy, not losing site of the fact that wild caught or captive bred, they are still very delicate. Fifth, they can really only be housed with other seahorses, or their cousins, the pipefish. Horses will get picked on be more aggressive tank mates, and gentle tank mates that eat the same food will always beat the horses to the food. Horses can sometimes take 10 minutes to eat one thing, so if you want other fish, be VERY selective. There are so many little things and big things about caring for these lovely little creatures, so do a mountain of research before even thinking about getting one.
4. sea horses are delicate creatures, and would do best in species only tanks until you get the hang of it, and need mature tanks... this sight is dedicated to seahorses, there is lots of good information here.... http://www.seahorse.com/ There are many wonderful types of filtration equipment and tank setups available that will make excellent homes for your Ocean Rider sea horses. If you are new to the hobby or are converting from fresh to salt water, you may want to take some time and read up on what your options are. It is worth taking the time to understand the basics of the hobby so that you can make the appropriate purchases that will ensure your success. Choose a system that fits your pocket book, accommodates your living area, your management schedule, your specific tank mates and tank load. Maintaining optimum water quality is essential. Avoid systems that produce a lot of bubbles and strong currents. Protein skimmers are highly recommended, especially in large systems. Rather than endorse specific systems Ocean Rider would rather provide you some guidelines and some examples of what systems work for others so that you can decide what works for you. Tank height: 20 inches minimum is recommended Tank Volume and Stocking capacity: 10 gallons for 2 to 4 individuals, 25 gallon for 4 to 10 individuals, 55 gallon for 10 to 15 100 gallon for 15 to 25, 150 gallon for 20 to 30 Tank Mates: These include but not limited to: blennies, gobies,draganets, mandarins, percula clowns, some butterflys, tangs and wrasses, soft and hard corals,