I ordered them from a comic book about 20 years ago. I remember they came from Coral Gables, FL. Only the prego male was alive when I got them. I never mailed back the female, it looked kinda cool dried out, so I kept it. The male gave birth to one baby. I seem to remember that they used to spit out the brine shrimp. They may have starved and didn't live very long. I was just a kid and kept them in a 2 gallon plastic tank. Neat little fish. I see them online: My linkwww.liveseahorses.net
Dwarf Seahorse
Started by
Guest_njJohn_*
, Sep 14 2009 08:03 AM
9 replies to this topic
#2
Guest_dafrimpster_*
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Posted 14 September 2009 - 02:32 PM
From what i have read they need newly hatched live brine shrimp to do well. I would bet having a constant supply of newborn brine shrimp would be a lot of work.
#3
Guest_Kanus_*
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Posted 14 September 2009 - 05:59 PM
Interesting note that while browsing that website, they sell searobins. That could be kinda cool in a decent size saltwater tank.
#4
Guest_Clayton_*
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Posted 01 October 2009 - 08:19 AM
They are about the only seahorse capable of thriving on brine shrimp alone, but it does seem to be a lot of work to be constantly hatching them out. I researched them for a while, but decided it was too much work for me.
Oddly enough your 2 gallon plastic tank was probably just about an optimal habitat for a half dozen or so dwarf seahorses. Smaller tanks or more ponies seem to be preferred since it is necessary to saturate the water with food in order to get enough food into the seahorses. After that you just need to resolve the issue of having dumped a huge load of brine shrimp in a tiny tank and keeping the water quality up.
Oddly enough your 2 gallon plastic tank was probably just about an optimal habitat for a half dozen or so dwarf seahorses. Smaller tanks or more ponies seem to be preferred since it is necessary to saturate the water with food in order to get enough food into the seahorses. After that you just need to resolve the issue of having dumped a huge load of brine shrimp in a tiny tank and keeping the water quality up.
#5
Guest_AndrewAcropora_*
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Posted 01 October 2009 - 05:35 PM
I got started on saltwater aquariums with dwarf seahorses (Hippocampus zosterae) out of a Boy's Life magazine way back when. They are neat creatures but require a lot of freshly hatched brine shrimp to thrive. Unless you're prepared to hatch brine shrimp every day, don't go for it. Pipefish are probably a better starting point. Cool critters though!
#6
Guest_Amazon_*
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Posted 02 October 2009 - 09:18 AM
Dwarfs eat a lot of brine shrimp. so if you can keep them fed on a ealthy diet go for it, if not, dont.
#7
Guest_cam191919_*
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Posted 02 October 2009 - 02:49 PM
i can catch a thousand in a spot i know of, i think they need more variety than brine shrimp tho...
#8
Guest_BenjaminS_*
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Posted 04 February 2010 - 01:02 PM
I used to keep them years ago when i had more time. They not only need to eat baby brine shrimp but newly hatched brine shrimp, at most no more than 12 hours old because those are the ones that are the most highly saturated in HUFA (highly unsaturated fatty acids). They were a challenge to keep for that reason and if you could, try raising other inverts to feed them like copepods or somehting similar sized. As previously mentioned they need to be kept in smaller tanks to keep their food in view but I think two gallons is too small for them, the water would foul so fast in a tank that small, you would have to be monitoring it constantly. They are very interesting to watch, especially when they are courting and mating (the male actually shows signs of labour pains!). If you have time, good luck with them. 
Don
Don
#9
Guest_critterguy_*
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Posted 04 February 2010 - 02:48 PM
Anyone here have luck with brackish water pipefish? Seems they'd be a neat alternative to dwarf seahorses.
Also, can these guys take brine shrimp large than BBS(i.e, could you raise middling size BS to feed them).
Also, I have read that most people use BBS irregardless of its age and gut load them with vitamin supplements(can't think of the name) to provide essential amino acids.
I wonder if they could be kept in a large tank with high light, macroalgae, and a large invert population. I wonder just how dense the zooplankton is where these guys are found? Do they depend on planktonic or benthic forms for the most part? If the latter strong amphipod or copepod cultures could make BBS addition not as important.
Also, can these guys take brine shrimp large than BBS(i.e, could you raise middling size BS to feed them).
Also, I have read that most people use BBS irregardless of its age and gut load them with vitamin supplements(can't think of the name) to provide essential amino acids.
I wonder if they could be kept in a large tank with high light, macroalgae, and a large invert population. I wonder just how dense the zooplankton is where these guys are found? Do they depend on planktonic or benthic forms for the most part? If the latter strong amphipod or copepod cultures could make BBS addition not as important.
#10
Guest_mikez_*
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Posted 04 February 2010 - 06:36 PM
Interesting note that while browsing that website, they sell searobins. That could be kinda cool in a decent size saltwater tank.
Not to derail but searobins are very very cool fish. They have huge mouths and love fish to eat but a really small one grows slow and stays small for awhile. Max size is over a foot though so big tank is better.
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