Weedy sea dragons (Phyllopteryx taeniolatus) are beautiful creatures who, like their seahorse relatives, transfer care of their developing young to the father until they mature. The actual exchange of weedy sea dragon eggs from female to male makes for a very rare video. In fact, Pang Quong, the diver who observed and recorded the pair at Flinders Jetty, Australia, believes that it’s never been observed in the wild.
What happens to the eggs next? The team at UC San Diego’s Birch Aquarium at Scripps Institution of Oceanography made the video below in 2013 to share the birth of seven baby sea dragons in their breeding program.
The BBC’s Life series also has excellent footage of baby weedy sea dragons hatching. Plus: What to Expect From an Expecting Seahorse.Bonus: Robust Ghost Pipefish camouflage.
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