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Hippocampus capensis  Boulenger, 1900

Knysna seahorse
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Hippocampus capensis
Female picture by Lourie, S.A.

Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes (gen., sp.) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes) > Syngnathiformes (Pipefishes and seahorses) > Syngnathidae (Pipefishes and seahorses) > Hippocampinae
Etymology: Hippocampus: Greek, ippos = horse + Greek,kampe = curvature (Ref. 45335).   More on author: Boulenger.

Environment / Climate / Range Ecology

Marine; brackish; demersal; non-migratory; depth range 0 - 20 m (Ref. 30915).   Temperate, preferred ?; 33°S - 34°S

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Point map | Introductions | Faunafri

Southeast Atlantic: endemic to South Africa. Hippocampus capensis has the smallest known range of any seahorse and was the first to be assessed as threatened on the IUCN Red List, in 1994. International trade is monitored through a licensing system (CITES II, since 5.15.04) and a minimum size of 10 cm applies.

Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm 5.8  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 12.1 cm OT male/unsexed; (Ref. 31848); common length : 7.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 4281)

Short description Morphology | Morphometrics

Dorsal spines (total): 0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 16-18; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 3.

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

Found in bays and estuaries among submerged vegetation; diurnal (Ref. 4281, 30915). Can tolerate salinities from 1-59 ppt (Ref. 30915). Ovoviviparous (Ref. 205). The male carries the eggs in a brood pouch which is found under the tail (Ref. 205). Length type refers to Height (= from top of coronet to the tip of straightened tail).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae

Male carries the eggs in a brood pouch (Ref. 205).

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator | Collaborators

Lourie, S.A., A.C.J. Vincent and H.J. Hall, 1999. Seahorses: an identification guide to the world's species and their conservation. Project Seahorse, London. 214 p. (Ref. 30915)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 115185)

  Endangered (EN) (B1ab(i,ii,iii,iv)c(ii)+2ab(i,ii,iii,iv)c(ii))

CITES (Ref. 94142)

Appendix II:
International trade monitored

Threat to humans

  Harmless




Human uses

Aquarium: commercial
FAO(Publication : search) | FisheriesWiki | Sea Around Us

More information

Countries
FAO areas
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Occurrences
Introductions
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Ecology
Diet
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Common names
Synonyms
Metabolism
Predators
Ecotoxicology
Reproduction
Maturity
Spawning
Fecundity
Eggs
Egg development
Age/Size
Growth
Length-weight
Length-length
Length-frequencies
Morphometrics
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Ciguatera
Speed
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Otoliths
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Tools

E-book | Field guide | Length-frequency wizard | Life-history tool | Point map | Classification Tree | Catch-MSY |

Special reports

Check for Aquarium maintenance | Check for Species Fact Sheets | Check for Aquaculture Fact Sheets

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Summary page | Point data | Common names | Photos

Internet sources

BHL | Cloffa | Websites from users | Check FishWatcher | CISTI | Catalog of Fishes (gen., sp.) | DiscoverLife | ECOTOX | Faunafri | Fishes of Iran | Fishtrace | GenBank(genome, nucleotide) | GloBI | GOBASE | Google Books | Google Scholar | Google | IGFA World Record | MitoFish | Otolith Atlas of Taiwan Fishes | Public aquariums | PubMed | Reef Life Survey | Scirus | SeaLifeBase | Tree of Life | Wikipedia(Go, Search) | World Records Freshwater Fishing | Zoobank | Zoological Record

Estimates of some properties based on models

Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82805):  PD50 = 0.5000   [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00427 (0.00168 - 0.01086), b=3.00 (2.78 - 3.22), in cm Total Length, based on LWR estimates for this (Sub)family-body shape (Ref. 93245).
Trophic Level (Ref. 69278):  3.4   ±0.5 se; Based on size and trophs of closest relatives
Resilience (Ref. 69278):  Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (tm=1; Fec=7).
Vulnerability (Ref. 59153):  Low vulnerability (16 of 100) .