Sea Horses

  Tank Raised  
Black Hippocampus Reidi


Black Hippocampus Reidi
Description: Also called the Long Snout Seahorse, the Hippocampus Reidi Seahorse is one of the most beautiful of all seahorse species, displaying almost unnatural shades of yellow, orange, and red.Tank Bred in the USA , their coloration may change in the aquarium and is highly dependent on the colors of its environment. They are a slender, narrow bodied slow growing sea horse that can reach in an aquarium lengths of 51/2 - 6 inches long and may live 5 to 7 years with proper care. Rated the most popular, exotic and colorful sea horse in the world by hobbyists everywhere, they are native to the waters of Brazil. They best when kept as either a mated pair, or with a small group of its own kind in a species-only aquarium of 20 gallons or larger. The taller the aquarium, the better, at least 12 inches high is best, as good circulation is most important. It will get along well with small, shy fish such as gobies, ocellaris and percula clowns, and firefish. But aggressive, territorial fish, or fast-moving fish do not make good companions. When ready to mate, the male Brazilian Reidi Seahorse will impress the female with its dramatic color changes, energetic pouch displays, and lots of graceful dancing. If receptive, the future mate will entwine tails, dance, and promenade with it, and then deposit as many as 600 eggs in the male pouch. About 14 days later, the male will give birth between 50-400 perfect miniature replicas of the pair.
Minimum Tank Size: The Hippocampus Reidi prefers a tank of at least 20 gallons and good circulation is most important. Have gorgonians, other plants in the tank for the seahorses to hold on to.
Diet: Seahorses do best when fed twice a day and do well on a diet of brine and mysid shrimp, amphipods and other macroscopic life. Offer frozen Mysis shrimp, frozen Brine Shrimp plus, Ocean Nutrition Prime Reef (Frozen), and other small meat based foods.
Level of Care: All seahorses are high high maintenance and very delicate.
approximate purchase size: 3-4"
**Advanced Aquarist Species

 $69.99 each  Male/Female Pair $179.99

Note: The single price listed above does not allow you to guarantee you will receive the sex requested. There is a $15.00 charge to guarantee sex of the seahorse.  

  Tank Raised  
Yellow Hippocampus Reidi

Yellow Hippocuampus Reidi
Description: Also called the Long Snout Seahorse, the Hippocampus Reidi Seahorse is one of the most beautiful of all seahorse species, displaying almost unnatural shades of yellow, orange, and red.Tank Bred in the USA , their coloration may change in the aquarium and is highly dependent on the colors of its environment. They are a slender, narrow bodied slow growing sea horse that can reach in an aquarium lengths of 51/2 - 6 inches long and may live 5 to 7 years with proper care. Rated the most popular, exotic and colorful sea horse in the world by hobbyists everywhere, they are native to the waters of Brazil. They best when kept as either a mated pair, or with a small group of its own kind in a species-only aquarium of 20 gallons or larger. The taller the aquarium, the better, at least 12 inches high is best, as good circulation is most important. It will get along well with small, shy fish such as gobies, ocellaris and percula clowns, and firefish. But aggressive, territorial fish, or fast-moving fish do not make good companions. When ready to mate, the male Brazilian Reidi Seahorse will impress the female with its dramatic color changes, energetic pouch displays, and lots of graceful dancing. If receptive, the future mate will entwine tails, dance, and promenade with it, and then deposit as many as 600 eggs in the male pouch. About 14 days later, the male will give birth between 50-400 perfect miniature replicas of the pair.
Minimum Tank Size: The Hippocampus Reidi prefers a tank of at least 20 gallons and good circulation is most important. Have gorgonians, other plants in the tank for the seahorses to hold on to.
Diet: Seahorses do best when fed twice a day and do well on a diet of brine and mysid shrimp, amphipods and other macroscopic life. Offer frozen Mysis shrimp, frozen Brine Shrimp plus, Ocean Nutrition Prime Reef (Frozen), and other small meat based foods.
Level of Care: All seahorses are high high maintenance and very delicate.
approximate purchase size: 3-4"
**Advanced Aquarist Species,

 $139.99 each  Male/Female Pair $329.99
Note: The single price listed above does not allow you to guarantee you will receive the sex requested. There is a $15.00 charge to guarantee sex of the seahorse.  

  Tank Raised
Orange/Red
Hippocampus Reidi

Orange/Red Hippocuampus Reidi
Description: Also called the Long Snout Seahorse, the Hippocampus Reidi Seahorse is one of the most beautiful of all seahorse species, displaying almost unnatural shades of yellow, orange, and red.Tank Bred in the USA , their coloration may change in the aquarium and is highly dependent on the colors of its environment. They are a slender, narrow bodied slow growing sea horse that can reach in an aquarium lengths of 51/2 - 6 inches long and may live 5 to 7 years with proper care. Rated the most popular, exotic and colorful sea horse in the world by hobbyists everywhere, they are native to the waters of Brazil. They best when kept as either a mated pair, or with a small group of its own kind in a species-only aquarium of 20 gallons or larger. The taller the aquarium, the better, at least 12 inches high is best, as good circulation is most important. It will get along well with small, shy fish such as gobies, ocellaris and percula clowns, and firefish. But aggressive, territorial fish, or fast-moving fish do not make good companions. When ready to mate, the male Brazilian Reidi Seahorse will impress the female with its dramatic color changes, energetic pouch displays, and lots of graceful dancing. If receptive, the future mate will entwine tails, dance, and promenade with it, and then deposit as many as 600 eggs in the male pouch. About 14 days later, the male will give birth between 50-400 perfect miniature replicas of the pair.
Minimum Tank Size: The Hippocampus Reidi prefers a tank of at least 20 gallons and good circulation is most important. Have gorgonians, other plants in the tank for the seahorses to hold on to.
Diet: Seahorses do best when fed twice a day and do well on a diet of brine and mysid shrimp, amphipods and other macroscopic life. Offer frozen Mysis shrimp, frozen Brine Shrimp plus, Ocean Nutrition Prime Reef (Frozen), and other small meat based foods.
Level of Care: All seahorses are high high maintenance and very delicate.
approximate purchase size: 3-4"
**Advanced Aquarist Species,

 $239.99 each  Male/Female Pair $549.99
Note: Thesingle price listed above does not allow you to guarantee you will receive the sex requested. There is a $15.00 charge to guarantee sex of the seahorse.  

 Kelloggi Seahorse - Captive-Bred
Hippocampus kelloggi

 
Kelloggi Brownish Black

 
Kelloggi White/Yellow
Captive-Bred Kellogi's are accustomed to eating frozen mysis shrimp,
making them a smart alternative to their wild-caught counterparts.

Description: Also known as the Great Seahorse, tank raised seahorses are generally far easier to maintain than their wild collected counterparts. Like other seahorses, Hippocampus kelloggi has a stunning body form. The Male adults of this species are brownish black in color with the females being a white,cream, or yellow. The coloration will change in the aquarium and is highly dependent on the colors of its environment. The Kelloggi, or Great Seahorse looks similar to the H. kuda species but is more slender in body size. The Great Seahorse will get along well with small, shy fish such as gobies, Ocellaris and Percula clownfish, and firefish. But aggressive, territorial fish or fast-moving fish do not make good companions. The Kelloggi will spend most of its time clinging to seagrass and rocks with its prehensile tail rather than swimming.
Minimum Tank Size: Kelloggi's do best when kept with a small group of its own kind in a species-only aquarium. Taller aquariums, a minimum of 16 inches high are best, and good water circulation is most important.
Diet:Fast, aggressive fish will out-compete the Great Seahorse for food. Captive-Bred Kellogi's are accustomed to eating frozen mysis shrimp,making them a smart alternative to its wild-caught counterparts. The Captive Bred Kelloggi's will also feed upon amphipods and other small crustaceans found in live rock. It will accept vitamin-enriched adult brine shrimp, but this should not make up a majority of their diet. Be aware, the Kelloggi Seahorse is a slow, deliberate feeder and prefers two or more small feedings per day. Due to variations within species, your specimen may not look identical to the image provided. .
Level of Care: Moderate
Reef Compatibility:Excellent reef fish. This species will not harm invertebrates.
approximate purchase size: 2-3"

Brown/Black $49.99 White/Yellow $74.99
   


How to Keep Seahorses Looking Their Best and Brightest 

The flamboyant reddish, bright yellow, and blazing orange color morphs of the Brazilian Hippocampus reidi seahorse are almost legendary among aquarists. Seahorses employ a remarkable ability to change coloration. Since they rely on color for many things, including camouflage, complex social interactions, courtship rituals, and to express their mood and emotional state.

Seahorses accomplishes their dramatic color changes through the contraction or expansion of pigment cells. Each pigment cell is a contractile cell or vesicle containing liquid pigment or pigment granules and capable of changing its form or size, thus causing changes of color in the skin of the animals that possess them. The pigment cells may be under nervous control and able to change very rapidly or under hormonal control and able to change only relatively slowly. The Hippocampus reidi is typically endowed with just a few different types of pigment color cells, and all colors are derived from these 3 or 4 basic pigments. The exact color the seahorse displays at any given time therefore depends on the concentration of these pigment cells, how close the cells are to the surface of the skin, and which color cells are expanded or contracted at the moment.

Amazing as it sounds, the Hippocampus Reidi seahorse has no orange pigment cells. The incredible bright orange coloration is produced by simultaneously expanding itheir yellow pigment cells and red pigment cells to the fullest. The exact shade of orange the reidi seahorse becomes and its brightness is determined by the proportion of yellow to red cells it opens, how fully they are expanded, and how close to the skin's surface they are. Obviously, a hippocampus reidi seahorse that is black has all its color cells expanded and a hippcampus reidi seahorse that is white has all of its color cells contracted so that all the wavelengths of visible light are reflected back to the observer.

What affects Seahorse Coloration?

The hobbyist should be aware that there are a number of environmental conditions and hormonal influences that can affect the coloration of seahorses in the aquarium, often by affecting the ability of color cells to contract and expand. These include the following factors:

Stress -- seahorses often respond to stress by darkening.

Emotional state -- when excited, seahorses typically brighten in coloration, reflecting a state of high arousal. On the other hand, fear, anxiety and distress are generally accompanied by dark, somber hues.

Social Interactions -- seahorses often brighten during their courtship displays; pair-bonded seahorses likewise brighten during their morning greeting rituals, and rivals go through characteristic color changes during their confrontations and competitions.

Competition for mates -- dominant individuals brighten; subordinate seahorses darken in submission.

Poor water quality -- high levels of wastes, ammonia, nitrite or nitrate can cause color cells to contract and colors to fade.

Low oxygen levels or high CO2 levels-- can cause colorful seahorses to fade.

Background colors -- seahorses will often change color in order to blend in with their immediate surroundings.

Medications -- some antibiotics and malachite-green-based remedies negatively affect color.

Tankmates -- seahorses may change their base coloration to blend in with the rest of the herd or to match their mate (or a potential partner). This can work both ways: a dark seahorse may brighten up and assume vivid hues when introduced to an aquarium with bright yellow or orange tankmates; In the same manner, a brightly colored seahorse may darken and adopt subdued coloration when placed amidst drab tankmates.

So What can you do to influence your Seahorse's coloration?

To Sum it all up, aside from providing your seahorses with optimal water quality, a stress-free environment, and an ideal, enriched staple diet, you must also take care to provide them with a colorful natural aquarium setting that will make them feel right at home. This means furnishing their aquarium with appropriate, multi-colored décor. Pay special attention to the hitching posts you select. Strive for bright reds, oranges, and yellows in anything your seahorses may adopt. Once the seahorse adopts a favorite base of operations like this, they will often proceed to change coloration to match their preferred resting spot. Reef tanks featuring colorful sponges, colorful mushrooms, leathers, and other seahorse-safe soft corals and gorgonians are ideal, guaranteed to keep seahorses feeling right at home and looking their best. Various types of Caulerpa, Gracilaria, and other attractive macroalgae can then be added to give your tank a welcome touch of green, red, gold and add a bit of living color (Giwojna, 2002). If your tank is not a reef tank, you can often achieve the same effect using "make beleive" coral, plastic gorgonians and replicas of marine plants to encourage them to retain their natural coloration. Many hobbyists find that a dark color substrate, such as black sand, brings out their seahorses' brightest colors and sets off their colorful hues exceptionally well.