Hippocampus kuda
Spotted seahorse | Common Seahorse | Estuary Seahorse | Oceanic Seahorse | Yellow Seahorse
Similar Species
Distribution
Tropical Indo-Pacific
Description
Variable body colour, (usually yellow or yellowish but can be black or brown) but with numerous very fine dark spots. Adults in pairs found in seagrass and algae areas of estuaries, often with drifting Sargassum up to 20km from shore. Known as H. taeniopterus in many databases. H. kuda may contain up to 10 distinct species.
Information
Max Size: 30 cm
Sea Temperature Range: 14.3-32.4°C
Depth: 0-55m
Habitat Generalization Index: N/A
Also referred to as the SGI (Species Generalisation Index), this describes the habitat niche breadth of the species. Species with values less than 15 are found in a relatively narrow range of reef habitat types (specialists), while those over 25 may be found on most hard substrates within their range (generalists). Learn more here.
Conservation and Rarity
IUCN Status: Vulnerable
Occurrence: Infrequent (1.2% of sites)
Occurrence describes how often the species is found on surveys within its distribution. It is calculated as the % of reef sites surveyed by RLS divers across all the ecoregions in which the species has been observed
Abundance: Solitary (1 per transect)
Abundance is calculated as the average number of individuals recorded per RLS transect, where present.
Edit by: Joe Shields