Some animals were so carried away by camouflage that they became completely unlike representatives of their class. For example, seahorses bear little resemblance to fish, and some of them are even difficult to mistake for animals. In this article we will talk about the master of mimicry - seahorse-rag. You will find photos and interesting facts about him below. We will also tell interesting facts from the amazing life of a marine life.
Raghorse
Seahorses look extraordinary. Their curved body is very similar to a chess piece of a horse, which is why they got their name. Despite the bizarre forms, they are all fish and belong to the order of the needle-shaped.
Many of them have different outgrowths on the body and can change color in order to merge with the surrounding background. The rag-seahorse does this especially well. His body is very elongated and covered with numerous processes that resemble the branches and leaves of underwater plants. Most of these processes serve only for disguise and do not carry other practical functions.
Like the rest of the skates, the rag has a small head and a long stigma elongated by a tube. It acts like a vacuum cleaner collecting prey with water. Ragmen are painted in green, yellow or blue, and are able to change hue, depending on their internal state and mood. The color also depends on what exactly the fish eat. Compared with brothers, they are quite large. Adult skates reach about 30-35 centimeters in length.
Where do they live?
Seahorses are exotic animals and are usually not found in our area. Mostly they prefer warm subtropical and tropical seas. Seahorse-rag lives on the western and southern shores of Australia, in the waters of the Indian Ocean. They live at shallow depths or on coral reefs, not climbing deeper than 20-30 meters from the surface.
In fact, the species is an Australian endemic and is considered a symbol of the state of South Australia. Today, the horse is under strict protection, as it may be threatened with extinction. The main reason for this is the pollution of water by industrial waste, as well as the catch of rags by divers for souvenirs.
Nutrition
Rag seahorses are single and do not form groups or swarms. They live on their own, feed on small crustaceans and algae that are found on their way. They have no special tricks and devices for catching prey. Skates are slow and clumsy enough to be serious predators. Their whole secret is disguised as algae, thanks to which they become invisible to their victims.
The sea rag-horse is devoid of teeth and does not have a movable jaw. He simply draws in his food and swallows without chewing. The basis of his diet is plankton and mysid crustaceans, which he can eat up to several thousand per day.
The horse itself rarely becomes prey. It contains a lot of bones and low nutrients, so it is not particularly valuable for predators.
Lifestyle
Rag is not a very active inhabitant of the ocean. It moves smoothly and very slowly, covering a distance of not more than 150 meters in one minute. In which case, he will not succeed in escaping from the enemy, therefore, with all his appearance, he creates the impression of a branch floating in the stream. Almost transparent fins on the back and chest help him move in the water column. They constantly hesitate and tremble, creating the illusion of leaflets.
The inability of the skates to swim confidently makes them completely helpless during a storm. However, many of them have a spiral tail that helps them cling to underwater plants and stay in place. This is well shown in the children's cartoon "Octonaphs" in the series "Octonaphs and Seahorses." The ragman does not have such a device, therefore, during a storm, waves often throw it on the coast.