Ace Breaking News – University of Queensland researchers survey population of endangered White’s Seahorse, ABC News reports
Researchers hope surveying endangered seahorse populations in Queensland waters will lead to a better understanding of a fish about which “very little” is known.
White’s Seahorse is found in seagrass beds along Australia’s east coast, and scientists say their presence can illustrate the health of marine ecosystems.
The species grows to between 10 and 15 centimetres, and is considered endangered in New South Wales and Queensland, as well as at a federal level.
Lead researcher and PhD candidate at the University of Queensland (UQ), Rowan Carew, said most of research on the the seahorse has been done in NSW.
“In Queensland we really don’t know how many there are, how they live, what kind of habitats they’re on and what kind of threats they’re facing,” Ms Carew said.
Associate Professor Karen Cheney from UQ’s school of environment said research would mostly take place in Moreton Bay, where the Brisbane River met the sea, as well as on the Sunshine Coast and Gold Coast.
“We keep seeing them, we know that they’re here, we just don’t know anything about their population structure, what type of habitat they like to live on, and we just don’t know how many we’ve got,” she said.
White’s seahorses were listed as endangered in NSW in 2020. (Credit: Jayne Jenkins )normal
Recorded sightings by citizen scientists have given researchers an understanding of where solid populations might be, but Ms Carew said it was difficult to establish how many seahorses there were because there was no “baseline”.
“In terms of future conservation, we are trying to figure out what areas are going to be the most important,” she said.
A researcher surveying seagrass meadows in Moreton Bay. (Supplied: Bodil Oorthujis)normal
A ‘charismatic little fish’
Ms Carew said seahorses were “really awesome, charismatic little fish” that were considered an “indicator species” for ecosystem health.
“If you are finding seahorses, it often means that area is quite healthy,”
she said.
The seahorses use their tail to stay wrapped around nets in Sydney Harbour. (Supplied)normal
White’s Seahorse can alter their colour, both long-term for camouflage and in short fast patterns, which are part of their mating rituals.
The seahorses are “relatively monogamous” and do a replication of their mating ritual every morning to “learn each other’s movements”, Ms Carew said.
“They colour match and flash different colours when they do their mating dance in the morning,” she said.
A baby White’s Seahorse at the Sydney Aquarium. (Supplied: SEA LIFE Sydney Aquarium)normal
Research focused on NSW
Dr Cheney said the species — sometimes called the Sydney Seahorse — was listed as endangered in NSW in 2020 after research showed some populations declined by 90 per cent over six years.
That research led to conservation projects aimed at seahorse habitat, as well as breed and release programs in Port Stephens and Sydney.Loading…
She said “very little” was known of the fish in Queensland, and researchers needed more data before similar efforts could be replicated in the state.
Ms Carew said it was not even known if the Queensland seahorses were “genetically the same as the seahorses in Sydney”.
She said genetic testing would be a part of the project she hoped would lead to more studies in Queensland.
“It’s really difficult starting from scratch, but someone’s gotta do it,”
she said.
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