SAN DIEGO — Birch Aquarium at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego is celebrating the arrival of more than 70 tiny newborn weedy seadragons, which are incredibly difficult to breed and rear in captivity.
Only a handful of facilities have successfully hatched and reared this unique species of fish related to seahorses and pipefish.
“This is huge for us. We’ve been working on this for decades,” said Associate Curator Leslee Matsushige, who leads Birch Aquarium’s Seahorse and Seadragon Breeding Programs. “This is a very challenging yet exciting process. We've had some previous experience raising young seadragons, so we hope to raise an even greater number of babies this year successfully.”
The baby weedies are about 1 inch long and weigh less than 1 gram, and will grow to be 13-15 inches long. They began hatching on Sunday, February 26, and continued hatching through Thursday, March 2. Weedy seadragons are fairly solitary creatures. Once the eggs hatch, the babies are fully independent, feeding and fending for themselves.
The babies are being raised behind the scenes so aquarists can monitor and feed them a special diet. Weedy seadragons are notoriously picky eaters; their food choice is tiny mysid shrimp.
“This successful breeding was the result of many years of dedication to understanding this delicate species and replicating their natural environment through changes in flow rates, water volume, lighting, and water temperature, which are key to influencing their health and successful breeding,” said Jenn Nero Moffatt, Senior Director of Animal Care, Science, and Conservation. “We are poised to help this species with our conservation program.”
The babies will spend up to a year behind the scenes before guests can see them. For a live camera view of the adult weedy seadragon exhibit at the Birch Aquarium, visit here.
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