Newbie Seahorse questions

[playa0069u]

Well my girlfriend now wants a seahorse, how hardy are they? Can i got some really basic info on their care please and a hardy species list? Thanks alot guys.

[JustDavidP]

Well...first things first, congratulations for asking before purchasing... you really do need to learn about sygnathids before attempting to keep them.

A good place to start (besides this forum ) is www.seahorse.org. It is where I learned most of the good (and bad) information on keeping seahorses. There are other forums on Reef Central and other sites as well. Keep in mind that anything you learn, should be taken with a grain of salt (pun intended). There are a lot of successful keepers out there who do things vastly different than the other. You need to read, learn and apply the concepts as it pertains to your system.

As far as hardiness... most will say that a good beginner seahorse is the Hippocampus Erectus. They are larger, and therefore easier to feed, care for etc. and more often than not, captive raised. You should really steer clear of any fish that is wild caught, for many reasons, most of which are discussed in this forum or others. In my opinion, there are a lot of good beginner horses, Reidi, Erectus, and Kuda are just a couple that quickly come to mind. There is a species list at the Org that you can review.

In regards to basic info, you can read here, at the Org or (blatant plug here) listen to my podcast at

http://www.talkingreef.com/forums/showthread.php?t=404

There are very few, if any, forum mods and admins that will chastise you for visiting other sites and learning. Whatever you do learn, bring back here and teach us

Do you have any particular questions? Ask away.

Dave

[playa0069u]

well i am getting her a 30 long hopefully but mayend up with the 30 tall. She wanted clownfish but now wants seahorses and i was wondering if we could do it. i am justgetting into salt, but i have been doing fresh for a while now...

[Reef_Angel]

well i am getting her a 30 long hopefully but mayend up with the 30 tall. She wanted clownfish but now wants seahorses and i was wondering if we could do it. i am justgetting into salt, but i have been doing fresh for a while now...

As always, DavidP has given you excellent advice. Seahorses are a wonderful adventure. They can be hard to raise if you aren't ready for the challenge, but they can also be quite simple once their tank is established for them. Once you get into seahorses, you want to make sure that you get 2 to start, otherwise 1 seahorse will be lonely. I have actually seen how sad they can be when one has to be separated from it's tank mates. It sure makes you feel bad for the little one. Once you do all your homework on seahorses, have a tank established, actually have them and they're settled in, you and your girlfriend can do some research together and find out what lives compatibly with seahorse. I think you'll be surprised! I know that clown fish are compatible with seahorses, so she can have the best of both worlds. Seahorses and clowns in one tank. Please keep researching this before you rush to any quick decisions. There's a wealth of knowledge here, and I'm sure you'll be walked right through the whole process as you become ready. As DavidP stated, you're on the right track doing the research first. It always helps lead to less disappointing outcomes in your new venture! Good Luck! ...Angel :angel1:

[JustDavidP]

I know that clown fish are compatible with seahorses, so she can have the best of both worlds. Seahorses and clowns in one tank.

While there are always "exceptions to the rule", I would not put clownfish in with seahorses. Yes, they are "compatible" in that they will not beat the tar out of each other. However, I personally feel that they are incompatible (in most cases) for the following reasons...

1) Clownfish, whether true or false, are agressive eaters. They can and will clean a water column of foodstuffs in short time, leaving your ponies to wonder what the heck they did (or didn't do) to deserve the show and not the meal. In all seriousness, the percs will CHOW fast, and leave little, if anything for the seahorses.

Rather than getting agressive feeders, look into smaller fish, with less of an appetite. Even better, for large, mature systems, a mandarin is a great choice. They eat slowly and actually "snick" much like ponies. Gobies are even a better choice because although they to eat or "gulp" down food, they tend to hover around a "home base" or their den and will leave other foods in the water for the ponies. Pipefish (properly quarantined and cleared for the mix) are also another good choice. They are sygnathids and snick foods in a slow, deliberate manner, much like the seahorses.

2) Temperature differences. Depending on the species of seahorse, they may just not be compatible with other "reef like" fish. H. Erectus, the giant seahorse, is from temperate zones, with mean temps in the 60's and 70's, (Farenheit) what you would find in the Mid Atlantic. That would make Nemo come down with Nemo-monia!! Even H. Reidi, when in captivity, should be kept in temps of about 75-78F. This is closer to reef at 80-82F, but I'd still not do it.

3) Clownfish enjoy "flow". This may be my own personal observation, but an observation none the less. Pony tanks = lower flow.

I'd like to conclude this post with a "sidebar" disclaimer in that YES, they COULD live together... but the question is "should they?" If we were to try to replicate the perfect surroundings for our charges.. and in this case a seahorse pair OR a clownfish pair, the systems would be different. That means that one or both pair will have to "settle" for less than perfect. Our goal is to create a system as close to "natural" to not only keep them alive, but to help them "thrive". At the end of the day...that means a reeflike or reef flat system for the clowns, and an inner atoll/lagoonal type system for the seahorses (Depending on species).

FWIW.. even though I'd still argue the feeding theory, other lagoonal species like Banggai Cardinals would be a better choice in a "boitope" kind of set up with seahorses.

D

[JustDavidP]

30 gallons = 18 inches in height. With that said, and if you apply the "Seahorses need 3X their lenght in tank height" theory, you would have to keep a shallow sand bed and smallish ponies.

My 26 Bow is 21 inches tall. If you subtract the space taken from the sand bed, it leaves just 18 inches. H. Reidi, the seahorses I keep are in and around 6 inches long at maturity. Therefore, 6X3 = 18. I guess you'd say I was okay. However, I'm currently building an acrylic tank to replace this one. Its dimensions will be 33" long by 17" wide by 24" tall. This will allow me to keep a deep sand bed and still have the "head room" the ponies need for their little mating dances etc.

Dave

[saxman]

i have to agree with David here. SH and clowns are NOT good tankmates. clowns are simply nasty little damsels in fancy pajamas. yes, some peeps do keep them together (they don't have to live in the tank with them), but IMHO, it's ill-advised, especially for a SH AND SW newby.

now comes my devil's advocate schtick:

SH are very cool fish, but IMHO, one of the more touchy charges one can keep. they're very hard on a system, bioload-wise, which is something a novice SW aquarist needs to consider as well. if you're set on SH being your first SW venture, i'd recommend getting your tank cycled, then keeping a clean-up crew with some macro, LR, and LS for a bit while you learn the ins and outs of SW...chemistry, water changes, etc.

another thing to consider is SH need to eat daily since they have rudimentary digestive systems (in a sense, they lack a "true" stomach). if you like to take vacations and long weekends, you'll need to have somebody trained to come in and feed them.

additionally, even tropical species need to be kept on the cool side of the temp range. we shoot for low to mid 70's (72-73 is ideal). if the temp is allowed to rise, the bacterial count in the tank will follow, and more often than not, you'll end up with a sick SH, and they're tuff to treat.

also, PLEASE only get TRUE CB (captive bred) SH from a reputable breeder or hobbyist. there are lots of so-called "tank-raised" SH out there, but these are actually raised in net-pens in the ocean (maricultured vs. aquacultured). these SH will basically have the same possible inherent problems as WC's (wildcaught). also, CB SH will come to you already eating frozen mysis with no training required. as mentioned, H. erectus are the best beginner SH.

i'm not trying to scare you away from SH, but i do like peeps to go into it with both eyes open. i've been in the SW hobby for 16 years, and i consider SH to be one of the most challenging fish i've ever kept. we currently keep 2 species of SH (H. erectus and H. reidi), and 1 species of pipefish, and in the past, have also kept H. barbouri and H. kuda. oh, i should mention that we don't keep any mixed syngnathid species tanks.

the best defense (and this is true of any new species one is considering) is RESEARCH, RESEARCH, RESEARCH.

[JustDavidP]

Yayyyy... There is now someone at CR, like me, who makes a mockery of the "Post Quick Reply" function Another 'man of many words'!

Thanks bro!

D

[saxman]

Yayyyy... There is now someone at CR, like me, who makes a mockery of the "Post Quick Reply" function Another 'man of many words'!

Thanks bro!

D

i looked at that post and wondered if i should title it "War and Peace"...

again, i just want anyone considering keeping SH to know they're a "special requirement, no slacking" kinda fish BEFORE they make the leap. even tho i was a "freshy" literally all my life prior to getting into SW, just learning the SW ropes took a bit of time. then again, the internet resources (like CR and the org) weren't available then.

[Sweetpea]

It's really good to come here to ask questions BEFORE you jump into anything. So many people get into this hobby under less-than-ideal circumstances (getting everything home, then saying what did I get myself into?), but once we get into it all we tend to educate ourselves rather quickly. Since you're here, you obviously want to do the right things. Keep asking questions, search the net, read, read, read, and come back and ask more questions! The folks here won't steer you wrong!