Congratulations are in order for a male seadragon at the Birch Aquarium at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego following the hatching of dozens of babies in captivity.
More than 70 newborn Weedy Seadragons hatched at the La Jolla aquarium, with the first tiny creatures beginning to swim into our world on Sunday and the last few being hatched Thursday. The sea creatures are only about an inch long and weigh less than 1 gram, according to the aquarium.
The Scene
“This is huge for us. We’ve been working on this for decades,” Associate Curator and lead of Seahorse and Seadragon Breeding Programs, Leslee Matsushige, said in a press release. “This is a very challenging yet exciting process. We've had some previous experience raising young seadragons, so we hope to be successful raising an even greater number of babies this year.”
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The excitement of the babies began in January when a female Weedy Seadragon transferred eggs to a male. Similar to seahorses, seadragon males carry the eggs after a successful courtship. Once he is carrying the eggs, the male seadragon will carry them on the underside of his tail for up to six weeks until they are ready to hatch.
At this time, the younglings are out of view from the public eye while aquarium caretakers monitor the babies. They’re being given a special diet of 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,” Senior Director of Animal Care, Science and Conservation, Jenn Nero Moffatt, said in a statement.
The hatchlings’ arrival culminates a milestone at Birch Aquarium, where aquarists rejoiced as they witnessed the first time a seadragon laid eggs on the public side of the aquarium. In 2020, the aquarium successfully welcomed the birth of two Weedy Seadragons behind the scenes as part of its breeding program.
For more information on Birch Aquarium or to purchase tickets for admission, click here.
