Is a seahorse a fish? Why? Is a seahorse a horse?

Seahorse is a small marine animal, named because it looks like a horse and lives in the sea. The shape of the seahorse's head is very similar to that of a horse, hence the name "seahorse". However, seahorse is a general term for several small fish species in the family Syngnathidae of the order Acanthopanax that live in warm seas. Is seahorse a fish? Why? Let's continue to learn more.

Contents of this article

1. Is the seahorse a fish? Why?

2. What level of national protection is the seahorse?

3. Is a seahorse a horse?

Is the seahorse a fish? Why?

Seahorses are fish. Although they do not look like fish, they share the same characteristics as fish. Seahorses reproduce by laying eggs, use gills to breathe, and use fins to swim, all of which are consistent with the characteristics of fish. Seahorses are creatures of the genus Hippocampus in the subclass Syngnathidae, class Osteichthyes, and are fish.

The seahorse's head is shaped like a horse, hence the name "seahorse". However, horses are mammals, while seahorses are fish.

You cannot determine the type of seahorse by its appearance, nor should you mistakenly think that seahorses are not fish. In fact, seahorses belong to the class of bony fish and are one of the fish in the sea.

Fish have gills as their special breathing organ, which is different from the breathing method of other animals such as mammals. Seahorses use gills to breathe and are fish.

Is the seahorse a national protected animal?

Seahorses are a national second-class protected animal. Seahorses are small marine animals named because they look like horses and live in the sea. Since May 15, 2004, my country has included seahorses in the management scope of second-class major protected animals.

It is prohibited to sell, purchase, transport or carry national second-level protected animals. Violators will be fined up to 10 times the amount, and in serious cases, criminal liability will be pursued.

Seahorses generally live in coastal areas with dense seaweed or many reefs. Sometimes they attach themselves to seaweed or other floating objects and are drifted by the current.

Seahorses feed mainly on small crustaceans, such as copepods, larvae of cirripeda, pygmy shrimps, mysids, and gammarids.

Is a seahorse a horse?

Seahorses are not horses. Seahorses are a general term for several small fish species that live in warm seas in the family Syngnathidae of the order Sphenodontidae. They are small marine animals. They are named because their heads are bent at nearly right angles to their bodies. Their heads are shaped like horse heads and form an angle with their bodies. Their snouts are long and tubular. In animal taxonomy, horses are classified as subphylum Vertebrata, class Mammalia, order Perissodactyla, family Equidae, genus Equus, and are herbivorous animals.

Seahorses usually live in the slow currents of coral reefs. Because they are not good at swimming, they often use their tails to tightly hook onto the branches of corals and the leaves of seaweed to fix their bodies to avoid being washed away by the rapids.

Seahorses swallow food by extending their gill covers and snouts. They mainly feed on barnacle larvae of copepods and cirripeds, larvae and adults of shrimps, firefly shrimps, mysid shrimps and hook shrimps.