Seahorse Sex

Seahorses are not only extraordinary for their ethereal transparency and beautiful equine faces, but also because they are the only species known to man in which the male carries babies in pregnancy. Here’s a description of the seahorse mating ritual: “The first time a seahorse couple meet, this gentle courtship carries on for hours, days even, and it is a risky time… The couple halt in the open water column and hold their bodies close, forming a heart shape with their touching snouts and bellies. Their first attempt isn’t quite right, so they break apart and try again several times until their position is perfected, the female just above the male. Then an extraordinary thing happens. A short hollow tube emerges from the female, which she pushes into an opening in her partner’s belly. The couple raise their heads and arch their backs as the female shoots an egg-laden liquid into the male.”