Blue Seahorse

The Spiny or Long Snouted Seahorse, can grow to a maximum length (or height) of around 15 cm to 17 cm and live in shallow, inshore waters in the warmer months of the year amongst rocks, mud, seaweeds and seagrass which they cling to with their prehensile tails. They can change colour to match their surroundings or when they are doing a courtship dance. Seahorses feed mainly on very small marine crustaceans. This seahorse species has a wide distribution around the UK and are found all around the British Isles and Ireland up into the Shetland Isles.

Seahorses are often taken by predatory fish and have to rely on camouflage to avoid detection as they are poor swimmers, with only their small dorsal fin undulating at 35 to 70 beats per second to provide them with weak forward propulsion. Seahorses have an unusual breeding pattern; males vie with each other for a mate and once a pair bond is formed with the female they reinforce this daily to maintain it with an elaborate courtship dance.

Britishseafishing.co.uk