Bargibant's Pygmy Seahorse
Hippocampus bargibanti
Sighting evidence at Pig Island, Madang
Photo: Julian Hsu · CC BY-NC
Bargibant's pygmy seahorses — barely 2 centimeters long — live exclusively on Muricella sea fans, their coloration and tubercle pattern so perfectly matched to their host that they evaded scientific discovery until 1969 when one was found accidentally on a sea fan collected for museum display. Monogamous pairs hold adjacent territories on the same fan, meeting daily for a greeting display that reinforces pair bonds, and the female deposits eggs directly into the male's brood pouch for gestation.
Evidence at this site
No confirmed records on file at this site
Bargibant's Pygmy Seahorse is listed as a curated species here based on historical reports.