Lets go! Whats going on out there?

[Sailfin]

Ok guys - a few people on here must appreciate the fact the mods have sorted out a seahorses thread for all us compromised turnover can't mix this an that types, (ie seahorse keepers). Ta muchly mods :D

So I'm going to start us off - what do we all keep, where are we at with them, are we breeding them?

Theres precious little information sharing with seahorses so lets get this information database started and see if we can't start helping each other out.

I'll start us off but won't bore you with the details (yet)

I keep

Dwarfs
Tiger tails
Kuda
Reidi
Barbouri
Fuscus

I have bred Kuda, Fuscus and hybrid types successfully but failed with Reidi and dwarfs. I currently have baby Tiger tail (2 months) and baby dwarfs (2 days, were born while I was at the reefers weekend :wub:) on the go.

All my seahorses tanks are mixed species tanks apart from the dwarfs although this isn't reccommended when you start keeping them for the first time.

So come on - lets hear it and get this Forum going!

:D

[Wee-Man]

You'll need pics Sailfin ;)

[malc]

This should be a great forum once it gains so momentum.

I used to Keep fuscus and bred them (all done in nsw from whitley bay) as well but sadly gave up the hobby due to house move...
but new house on the horizon and so is a new tank setup, cannot decide to have a reef tank or seahorse tank, then again i could make both and create a join :)

malc

[Viv]

Yeh, defintely agreed that its a great idea adding this section!

[Redone]

Hi
My girlfriend (Katrina) and i have kept a pair of Reidi for 12 months and had a female Barbouri for 6 months still looking for a good male.
New 24x24x24 cube for them on the way very soon too.
The Reidis give birth every 3-4weeks regular as clockwork!
Some pics the babies first.
http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc110/redone26/seahorse10.jpg
http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc110/redone26/seahorse11.jpg
http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc110/redone26/seahorse9.jpg


http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc110/redone26/barbori1.jpg

http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc110/redone26/IMG_2309.jpg

http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc110/redone26/feeding3.jpg

[malc]

well it looks like a quick divert when i'm down in Darwen for some new stock when my tanks is ready :laugh:

love the pics,

[Sailfin]

Nice pics those Reidi fry are ace

I'm afraid mine aren't that clear - will take some up-to date ones (trying to use recently learned skills :D) when I get chance (oh and probably wait until the flatworm plague and cyano have died down as well :o )

Barbouri

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff178/flagfin/barbourimale1.jpg

Tiger-Tail

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff178/flagfin/comes.jpg

Baby Tiger-tail

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff178/flagfin/babycomes2wks1.jpg

One of the tank mates

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff178/flagfin/Amelia2.jpg

One of the seahorse tanks

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff178/flagfin/Vision260.jpg

Little Kuda in nano (suspected hybrid)

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff178/flagfin/featherstar1.jpg

Garden eels, Reidi and Fuscus feeding

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff178/flagfin/Gardeneelsandseahorsesfeeding.jpg

Female dwarf

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff178/flagfin/Mummydwarf.jpg

[Simon]

Ditto! Firstly a big thanks to the UR team for providing us with this new forum :thumbsup:

I'm also looking forward to hearing about other peoples horsey tales, tank set-ups, species kept, as mentioned a few pic's would be cool too,

As for myself, well I've always been mesmerised by seahorses ever since first seeing one as a young lad, from that day forth I dreamt of one day being able to keep a seahorse of my very own, eventually the dream became a reality and like most I started off with a pair of Reidi, not because I particularly wanted that species but more due to the fact they were the only ones available at the time, over the past few years I've looked after a number of different seahorse tanks belonging to friends and family who have kept various different species of seahorses but I've always stayed with the Reidi myself, I think for me its more the challange of trying to raise their fry - a glutton for punishment!

Currently in the early stages of setting up a new tank which means my horses are living in a holding tank next to my bed at the mo, as I've no current pics to post thought i'd post a few i found on the pc

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa31/redhotracing/DSC02185.jpg
http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa31/redhotracing/DSC01873-1.jpg
http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa31/redhotracing/DSC03945.jpg
http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa31/redhotracing/DSC04001.jpg
http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa31/redhotracing/DSC04003.jpg
http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa31/redhotracing/DSC04322.jpg
http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa31/redhotracing/DSC02711Medium.jpg
http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa31/redhotracing/DSC02745Large.jpg

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa31/redhotracing/DSC02486Medium.jpg

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa31/redhotracing/DSC04054.jpg
http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa31/redhotracing/DSC04036c.jpg
http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa31/redhotracing/DSC04035c.jpg
http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa31/redhotracing/DSC04034c.jpg
http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa31/redhotracing/DSC03975.jpg
http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa31/redhotracing/DSC03974.jpg
http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa31/redhotracing/DSC03973.jpg
http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa31/redhotracing/DSC03972.jpg
http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa31/redhotracing/DSC03971.jpg
http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa31/redhotracing/DSC03932.jpg
Si

[Dave.I@tac.com]

A seahorse section,great !
I have a lagoon type tank with H.Barbouri.I also keep various lps and softies,a yellow long nose,a pair of red scooters,pair of blue line pipefish,fridmani and a signal goby.
I have raised one female to maturity this year and have a couple more on the go although finding the time for fry has been hard this year.I hope to add a pair of reidi soon.Pic's
http://i193.photobucket.com/albums/z219/creeperkid/sygtank818.jpg
http://i193.photobucket.com/albums/z219/creeperkid/sygtank602.jpg
http://i193.photobucket.com/albums/z219/creeperkid/sygtank720.jpg
http://i193.photobucket.com/albums/z219/creeperkid/sygtank230.jpg
http://i193.photobucket.com/albums/z219/creeperkid/sygtank220.jpg

[Sailfin]

That picture of the fry eyeing up that tasty morsel is excellent!

[satarion]

Well I have been keeping Reidi now for 9 months now.
It was my wife who had this obsession with wanting to keep Seahorses at first as I have a 66gal reef tank so we had to purchase another tank for the horses and a 120lt tank was purchased and set up.
We have had several births over this period and unfortunatly we havent been able to rear any of them as yet but we are still trying and we will get there in the end.

[satarion]

http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploader/2008Q3/Just looking.jpg

http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploader/2008Q3/Image040.jpg

[satarion]

http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploader/2008Q3/Image040_4.jpg

[satarion]

http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploader/2008Q3/Image043_2.jpg

[Siren]

Hi,here's a pic of my pair of Reidi.
I have since lost my female,and my male is now in a bigger tank.
They did breed at one time,i saw him give birth to 2 babie's,but couldn't get them out the tank,and lost them.
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploader/2008Q3/DSCF0009_1.jpg

[Siren]

Hi,if Reidi and Kuda both have Pelagic fry,are the Kuda fry bigger,and that's why they are easier to rear,or is it something else ?
Regards,
Julie.

[thefirethief]

Nice pics those Reidi fry are ace

I'm afraid mine aren't that clear - will take some up-to date ones (trying to use recently learned skills :D) when I get chance (oh and probably wait until the flatworm plague and cyano have died down as well :o )





Garden Eels! Flying gurnards! You lucky *&^#*&!!!

You got details of both these setups? I'm impressed!

I'll also echo what a few folk have said so far, thanks to the mods for this. I'm not a seahorse keeper yet but I've just started planting a 2Ft tank for H. Breviceps which I'll hopefully recieve in October. I'll stick a 'progress' thread up soon.

[Sailfin]

Hya

Julie - the Kuda fry are a little bigger and I don't think they are usually pelagic for as long as Reidi. In my experience, although they need to start with rots the Kuda fry can usually take very small bbs after the first few days and can be weaned onto larger, more nutritious foods earlier than Reidi. I think one of the problems with Reidi fry is that they have to stay on small foods for such a long time and so often die of malnutrition. The Kuda fry also seem slightly less obsessed with trying to snick air than the Reidi although the green water and lower salinity methods are still recommended for them.

Thefirethief - thanks, briviceps are really nice little creatures (although I've never kept them), be looking forward to an update on those.

The garden eels and sea moth are in the same tank with some seahorses. Its a Vision 260 with a 6" sandbed at one end. Its run with T5's, an old protien skimmer, two external canister filters (Fluval 204 and 305) and no idea how much live rock. The flow from the fluvals sends the food along the top then scoots it along the bottom towards where the garden eels hang out. Everyone seems to get on pretty well apart form when the seahorses hitch onto the garden eels - that really pees them off!

[mark0933]

Hi folks, an ex-pat brit currently in canada here. I have kept horses (erectus, kuda, reidi) previously. My LFS has some horses coming in, ordered as Hippocampus Hippocampus. I have researched, and looks like it is a eurpoean species (unfortunatley no pics yet) - anyone have any info on whether the fry would be benthic or pelagic?

Figured I'd ask here since it is not a common species on this side of the world.

Mark

[Simon]

Hi Mark, Welcome to UR :)

I believe H. hippocampus are Distributed widely along the south coast of England, substantial populations have been recorded around the Channel Islands and Irish coast :cool:

Haven't had any experience with these myself but from what i understand although the fry are released at an advanced stage of development they are still classed as pelagic.
New born fry will drift freely in the water column for the first week or so of their life before hitching, this short pelagic stage will give them a higher chance of survival than in many other pelagic species which as you probably know can take much longer.

HTH
Si

[Linda]

Hi everyone :)

I have been keeping H.Reidi for 18 months and at present have just one pair. My old pair used to produce fry every 3 weeks and I tried my hand at rearing them earlier this year. I never managed to get them past 8 weeks :( Sadly they have now died and I have another pair, which have produced fry twice, but both times during the night when I have not been around to harvest them. Once I do, I will be having another bash :whistling:

A few pics and a video of my old boy giving birth:

http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/Feebscass/Cube/26108004.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/Feebscass/Cube/261082011.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/Feebscass/Cube/020108-2003.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/Feebscass/Cube/26808006.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/Feebscass/Cube/3908018.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/Feebscass/Cube/6308Fry003.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/Feebscass/Cube/2408Mixed005.jpg

http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/Feebscass/Videos/th_23508003.jpg (http://s149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/Feebscass/Videos/?action=view&current=23508003.flv)

[Simon]

Hey Linda ;)

Glad you've found the forum :D
Great pic's btw

Si

[Linda]

Hi Simon :wave:

and thanks ;)