Georgia Aquarium's Rare Weedy Seahorse Carrying Eggs
 Here is a Father's Day photo of Georgia Aquarium's male weedy sea dragon carrying eggs. A weedy sea dragon at the Georgia Aquarium is pregnant...not a female sea dragon, but a male.
It's up to the male to carry the eggs.
This is only the third weedy sea dragon pregnancy in a U.S. aquarium.
GEORGIA AQUARIUM ANIMAL FACT SHEET
Weedy Sea Dragon
Phyllopteryx taeniolatus
Range/Habitat
• The weedy sea dragon has a limited distribution from southern and western Australia to the southern tip of Tasmania.
• It is usually found in kelp forests, reefs or within shallow, weedy areas of estuaries.
• The weedy sea dragon occurs in depths to 160 feet (0 - 50 m); however, they tend to remain in shallower waters unless food is scarce.
Physical Characteristics
• The adult weedy sea dragon is approximately 18 inches (45 cm) in length.
• Its body form (long and compressed) is quite distinctive. It has long, narrow flaps of skin that project from the body and tail.
• Individuals are commonly olive-colored on the back, with a lighter, yellow-hued and spotted coloring on the body. It has a network of about seven dark bluish lines along the trunk region. Its leaf-like appendages are purple with a dark edge.
• This sea dragon actually belongs to the same family as sea horses (Syngnathidae), but unlike sea horses, it swims horizontally with its abdomen facing downward.
• It has a tube-like snout that functions like a drinking straw to suck up its food.
• The color and shape of the appendages are based on the sea dragon’s food supply and environment, and also vary with other factors such as depth and geography. A weedy sea dragon from a deep-water habitat tends to be less leafy and brighter.
 Diet/ Feeding
• The weedy sea dragon preys on small crustaceans, including tiny mysid shrimp, as well as worms and other invertebrates.
Conservation Status
• The weedy sea dragon is listed as “endangered” on the IUCN Red List.
• The sea dragon is protected by Australian law and can only be imported by collectors with special permits.
• It is a protected species in New South Wales and Tasmania.
Additional Information
• With their leaf-like fins and frilly appendages, the weedy sea dragon camouflages itself perfectly among seaweed and sea grass beds. It is nearly impossible to find among the plants as it slowly sways back and forth with the current.
• The weedy sea dragon is a poor swimmer.
• An interesting fact about the weedy sea dragon is that it is the male of the species that “gives birth.” During mating season, which usually starts in October or November, the female lays up to 250 to 300 eggs onto the soft underside of the male's tail. The eggs embed into the skin in cup-like structures that harden and form around each egg to hold and protect them during brooding. After about two months, the bright pink eggs hatch into miniature juveniles, which settle into the vegetation. Although they are smaller and less colorful, and have a much shorter snout, the juvenile weedy sea dragon closely resembles the adult.
Sources
www.fishbase.org
Seahorses, Pipefishes, and Their Relatives. Kuiter, Rudie H., pgs. 75-79
Fishes of the World - An Illustrated Dictionary. Wheeler, Alwyne, pg. 286
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