Feeding habits of the seahorse Hippocampus patagonicus (Actinopterygii: Syngnathiformes: Syngnathidae) on the southern coast of Brazil

Abstract

The feeding habits of the seahorse Hippocampus patagonicus Piacentino et Luzzatto, 2004 on the southern Brazilian coast was evaluated through the gut content analysis of 82 individuals (28-110 mm in height, HT) obtained through a fish landing monitoring program (July 2011 to November 2012). Results showed that H. patagonicus feed mainly on small benthic and pelagic zooplankton organisms, mainly amphipods, decapods postlarvae (megalopa), and isopods. In the warm season (>20°C, from November to April) the diet was dominated by amphipods, and in the cold season (<19°C, from May to October) by decapods post-larvae and isopods. No significant differences were observed on the diet composition of juveniles (<48.5 mm HT) and adults (>48.5 mm HT) and also among sites. The importance of amphipods and decapod larvae as a food source is well known for seahorses, all explained by their highly specialized prey-capture mechanism and foraging behaviour.

Magnitude of bycatch of Hippocampus patagonicus, an endangered species, in trawl fisheries in Southeast and South Brazil

“…Many have additional authorizations that allow them to operate with other types of trawl or gillnet in the Territorial Sea and Exclusive Economic Zone -EEZ areas. All types of trawling and even gill fishing, at some point, captured seahorses in the South and Southeast Brazil (Pereira, 2016;Abilhoa et al, 2018;Silveira et al, 2018).…”

Chemical constituents, pharmacological activities and quality evaluation methods of genus Hippocampus: A comprehensive review

“…Genus Hippocampus , a kind of marine teleost fish, belongs to the Syngnatidae family, which also includes pipefish and seadragons ( Vitturi & Catalano, 1988 ), and mainly distributed in the Indian, Atlantic and Pacific oceans ( Perera, Dahanayaka, & Udagedara, 2017 ). Hippocampus generally inhabits shallow waters above 30 m in tropical and temperate regions, favoring seagrasses and macroalgal ( Pereira, Silveira, & Abilhoa, 2018 ), which have a suite of unusual biological characteristics shared by these species including male pregnancy and monogamy ( Holt, Fazeli, & Otero-Ferrer, 2021 ). In turn, these uncommon characteristics render them extremely vulnerable to environmental impacts, including climate change on the coral reef and bottom trawling causes to seabed habitats destruction ( Scales, 2010 , Wei et al, 2017 ).…”