It is safe to say that males in the animal kingdom are not best known for being kind, caring and doting fathers. Often they are gone long before their babies arrive, leaving the challenging task of raising young to the female. But that isn’t always the case, and with Father’s Day coming up in the UK this weekend, we are taking a moment to look at one of the most interesting dads of the animal kingdom – sea horses.
Do male seahorses really give birth?
One of the most well-known facts about seahorses is that it is the males that give birth, not the females, and it’s true. Seahorses are the exception to the rule and the only animal to reproduce this way.
How do males support their growing babies?
The mating ritual of seahorses starts, as it does for many animals, with a dance – the male and female twirl together underwater. The female then deposits her eggs into the male’s brood pouch, where they stay for between 10 days and six weeks, depending on the species. When they are ready, the male releases the baby seahorses into the water, where they get carried around by currents until they grow up.
How males support babies while they are in their pouches was a mystery, confusing scientists for years. In 2021, however, researchers published a paper – read it here – investigating just that, finding that the brood pouch develops similarly to the human placenta. As the babies (fry) grow, the brood pouch gets thinner and fills with blood vessels which pass oxygen and nutrients to the young.
Find out more – Science.org.
Why do male seahorses give birth?
The answer to this one is tricky. Nobody really knows, but there are theories.
One theory mentioned in National Geographic is that it enables seahorses to reproduce quicker. Producing and then raising eggs takes a lot of energy. By splitting that process in two and giving egg raising to the males, females are saving energy and are thus able to produce more eggs quicker. Male brood pouches return to normal after they are given birth, so they are ready for another pregnancy almost straight after giving birth.