Fun Alligator Pipefish Facts For Kids
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The alligator pipefish are double-ended pipefish and are a species of seahorse that lives between the Indo Pacific range of East Africa to Northern Australia. These marine creatures can be widely found in the reef flats, bays, lagoons and prefer shallow waters and floating masses of algae as their habitat.
They generally search for hiding areas behind the seaweeds looking for crustaceans and tiny invertebrates. They are very fragile and gentle creatures.
When kept in a tank, it should be kept in mind to keep them either with their own species or with other gentle fishes that are not very active. The tank should be big enough to hold 20 gal (75.7 l) of water.
If you liked reading this, then you must also have a read of our delta smelt and sea dragon facts.
Alligator Pipefish Interesting Facts
What type of animal is an alligator pipefish?
The alligator pipefish (Syngnathoides biaculeatus) is a species of seahorses belonging to the family Syngnathidae. They have a really long slender body and tail. Just like the seahorses, the males of these marine creatures carry the eggs in their pouch attached to their abdomen.
Most of them are green in color though brown, blue, gray are also to be found. Their color helps them camouflage better in their environment. Since the seahorses and pipefish belong to the same family, they share similar traits.
What class of animal does an alligator pipefish belong to?
The alligator pipefish belongs to the class of Actinopterygii. They are double-ended pipefish, who are a close species to the seahorse.
How many alligator pipefish are there in the world?
The exact number of this species of pipefish is not mentioned, but as their conservative status is Least Concern, it is found in quite adequate numbers. There are around 200 species of pipefish, 51 of the genus belonging to the family Syngnathidae.
Where does an alligator pipefish live?
The alligator pipefish, Syngnathoides biaculeatus, can be found in the Indo-Pacific Ocean's tropical and subtropical coastal shallow waters, from East Africa to Northern Australia. Alligator pipefish can also be found in the Red Sea and in the regions of India, Japan, Indonesia, New Guinea, and the Philippines.
What is an alligator pipefish's habitat?
The alligator pipefish is a species of seahorse that hides behind the seagrasses and seaweed to camouflage themselves with the color of the seagrass as they are green, blue, brown, and gray in color.
They generally prefer lagoons, bays, estuaries and reef flats, sea, coastal shallow waters, and they like to be near the floating masses of algae. They are mostly found in shallow water and can travel 16.4 ft (5 m) deep where they generally stay.
When kept in a tank, the minimum tank size should be 20 gal (75.7 l).
Who do alligator pipefish live with?
The pipefish, Syngnathoides biaculeatus, either live on their own or their mating pairs.
How long does an alligator pipefish live?
The alligator pipefish, Syngnathoides biaculeatus, or the alligator pipefish live up to the range of 5-10 years.
How do they reproduce?
The alligator pipefish are monogamous in nature, and like the seahorses, the males of these fishes carry the eggs.
Generally, the reproduction of the Alligator pipefish takes place during summer when the female produces around the range of 60-200 eggs and are transferred to the males through a small ovipositor, and the males retain the eggs in a brood pouch where those eggs stay till they hatch.
When the eggs hatch, they are independent of their parents.
What is their conservation status?
According to the IUCN, they have been declared this species to be Data Deficient as they did not find exact or sufficient information about them. Therefore, there is not much known about their conservation status.
Alligator Pipefish Fun Facts
What does alligator pipefish look like?
The alligator pipefishes belong to the phylum Chordata, they have a long body, and their body is tetrahedral. They have a narrow head with a snout that has tentacles. They have about 48 rays on their dorsal fin and four rays on their anal fin.
They have a long tail, and they are mostly gray, blue, green, or brown in color to hide in their surrounding. The females tend to have a zigzag mark along their abdomen. They are dimorphic, and the males are bigger in size.
How cute are they?
The pipefishes are a species of seahorse that has a long slender body and tail. They are colorful but not much cute. Though many keep them in the aquarium, considering them as an attractive species.
How do they communicate?
It is not known how the pipefish communicates. They are thought to communicate just like other fishes by gestures and motions.
How big is an alligator pipefish?
The length of an alligator pipefish can range from 8-11 in (20.3-27.9 cm). The male pipefishes are bigger in size than the female. For example, the length of the male is 11 in (27.9 cm), and the female is 8 in (20.3 cm).
How fast can an alligator pipefish swim?
They are not great swimmers, and they move by moving their dorsal and pectoral fins. These marine species are very slow movers, so they hide behind the seagrass or camouflage in their environment before approaching their prey or in order to hide from their predictor.
How much does an alligator pipefish weigh?
Their exact weight is yet to be studied, but they are extremely lightweight.
What are the male and female names of the species?
The alligator pipe fish are distinguished as male and female alligator pipe fish only. They don't have any specified names as such.
What would you call a baby alligator pipefish?
The alligator pipefish baby is called a young or a juvenile pipefish.
What do they eat?
The alligator pipefish generally feed on zooplanktons. Their diet includes amphipods, shrimps, mysids, worms, tadpoles, and other crustaceans. They suck up their prey and feed on them. They can't move fast, so they hide behind the seagrass before slowly approaching their prey. In fish tanks, they generally feed on dried fish foods.
Are they dangerous?
No, they are not dangerous to humans, and they are mostly kept as pets or sometimes dried and used as medicines by the Chinese called hailong.
Would they make a good pet?
Yes, these fish are generally caught for the pet trade and are kept in the home aquarium, and are also displayed in public aquariums. Thus they are definitely suitable for keeping as pets.
However, they need to be taken extensive care of as they are fragile, wild, and docile creatures. It might not be easy in the beginning to feed them as they prefer a live food diet.
Being picky eaters, they might often not survive with the frozen food diet, but in the care of the experts, they are good to go. They need a minimum tank size of 20 gal (75.7 l) of water.
Did you know...
Both seahorses and pipefish are from the same family, Syngnathidae, and they share many similar traits - both of them have a snout, and in place of scales, their thin skin is stretched over their bones, and both of them are slow swimmers.
Apart from that, the males give birth to the young in both the seahorse and pipefish species.
Seahorses can live for three to five years.
Are pipefish aggressive?
No, the alligator pipefish is not aggressive. In fact, they are just opposite and are known to have a very peaceful temperament, unlike most other pipefishes, which are very aggressive to their own kind.
However, these marine species are preferred not to be kept with aggressive species of fishes as alligator pipefish might not survive. Also, being slow movers, they might not get food often when other active fishes are present in the aquarium.
Does an alligator pipefish hide in seaweeds?
Yes, they inherit a pretty good camouflaging ability as they are green, brown, blue, and gray in color. They can hide pretty easily behind the seaweeds, corals, and other aquatic plants to hide from their predators and catch their prey as they are slow movers—this ability to camouflage plays well to their advantage.
Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly animal facts for everyone to discover! For more relatable content, check out these codfish facts and spiny dogfish facts for kids.
You can even occupy yourself at home by coloring in one of our free printable Alligator pipefish coloring pages.
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