Actually, as sad as it may sound, I'm not really even going to try to save these. First of all I was not in the least bit prepared and didn't even plan on trying to raise seahorse fry until next fall/winter. At this time of year I try to keep my indoor hobby maintenance to a minimum so I can go back to devoting my free time to my outdoor ponds and habitats. Raising fry was not in the plan, and I really didn't even think I would HAVE any fry until I purchased another seahorse. The only horses I have right now are an adult male Southern Erectus, a young adult female red Reidi and an adolescent male yellow Reidi. I didn't think the horses would cross breed and I didn't think the male Reidi was even big enough or old enough to breed yet so I honestly am not even sure who the "Daddy" is at this point.
There were no fry this morning and there were no fry this afternoon during my lunch hour. I did comment to the adolescent male Reidi that his belly looked awfully puffed up all of a sudden but I figured he was just showing off and practicing inflating. Then at 5:30 p.m. my husband called me at the office and said "you better get home ASAP - I just got home and you have baby seahorses in your tank!" We have no idea who gave birth and how many there originally were - there were only these 26 when I got home. Some could be in the Fluval (which I just cleaned Sunday) and many could have gotten eaten. Or, this could just be a really tiny brood, which would make sense that it was the young male that produced them. But now that you mention it could be a "warning" batch, the young guy does still look like he's got a full belly. That's why I can't tell who gave birth---both males still look inflated.
With a starting number of only 26 I'm not even going to bother setting up the nursery tank but I"m THRILLED to know that I have a mated pair in there!!!
Such fascinating little specimens - I can't stop staring at them.
Sue