Cross Breeds

Do the male sea horse of some species really have the babies?

Why is this considered the male if it has the babies, how do they know it isn't the female ? Or is this false, it's supposed to be true about all sea horses, or atleast a particular type of sea horse ?

Public Comments

1. yes they do actually. the male fertilizes the eggs with the female. once they've matured they are placed on the underbelly of the male sea horse. i think it's true for most sea horses... not too sure?
2. The male has the sperm. The female has the egg. The egg and the sperm meet. The fertilized eggs grow in the male's pouch.
3. yes
4. NO,they do not. They merely gather & carry the fertilized eggs!
5. In all species of seahorse, and their relatives the pipefish and seadragons, the males carry the developing eggs. The female produces the eggs and the male produces the sperm (this is the definition of female and male). The female lays the eggs into a pouch on the male's belly in the case of seahorses - it's just a patch of specialised skin on seadragons and most pipefish. Here, the male fertilises them and keeps them until they hatch. The tiny babies then emerge - the sight of them being expelled from the pouch makes it look as though the male is 'giving birth', though it is not technically birth as we humans have.