With its spiky, curled tail and tiny horse-like head, the sea horse has enchanted people for thousands of years. Fishermen in ancient Rome believed that Neptune, the god of the ocean, charged through the water in a horse-drawn chariot. Sea horses, they figured, must be the babies of Neptune's horses!
Of course, now we know that sea horses are not horses at all--they are a kind of fish. The long-snouted creatures still seem as magical as ever, especially to divers who have watched them horsing around in the sea. But today, sea horse populations face an uncertain future. Fishermen are catching too many of them, and their undersea habitats are being destroyed. Recently experts from 13 countries met at the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago, Illinois, to share ideas about how to save these graceful creatures.
Sea Horses For Sale
At least 20 million sea horses are taken from the ocean each year. More than 95% are used for traditional medicines in Asian countries. The sea horses are usually dried and ground up into a powder used to treat such problems as asthma, throat infections, skin diseases and cuts. How well the medicines work is unclear.