There were concerns that the Knysna seahorse might have gone regionally extinct in the Kuerbooms Estuary, but the rare sighting of an egg-carrying specimen has given hope to the world’s most endangered seahorse.
The Knysna seahorse is only found in three estuaries worldwide: Keurbooms in Plettenberg Bay, The Knysna Estuary and Swartvlei in Sedgefield.
There is little known about South Africa’s only endemic seahorse, which was the first to be listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List in 2004.
Even though there have been studies on the animal in the past, the life history of the Knysna seahorse remains relatively unknown, such as how fast it grows, how far it moves, and how many are there?
The last survey counted just 72 in the Knysna Estuary in 2019. Thankfully, one was spotted in Keurbooms by marine researcher and coordinator of the Ocean Research Conservation Africa (Orca) Foundation, Melissa Nel.
‘Such a special sighting for me because it took me a couple of years to find my first Knysna seahorse hiding in the eel grass,’ she wrote when posting the images. ‘Now they just pop out to me, almost saying, ‘Hi Mel, here I am nice to see you again.’’
She’ll also know that this specimen is a male, as the paternal parent carries the fertilised eggs. Have a look at Melissa’s sighting below.
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Featured Image: Melissa Nel
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