Did you know? Male seahorses give birth

Posted by Rill in Seahorse Videos | 0 comments It's one of the most fascinating facts about the seahorse - males get pregnant and give birth to live, fully-formed young. During mating the female seahorse deposits her eggs in a pouch in the male seahorse's belly. The male then fertilizes the eggs and carries them until they are ready to be pushed out into the water to fend for themselves. The gestation time can vary between six days and six weeks depending on the species. When the male is ready to give birth he makes thrusting movements which push the young, or fry, out of his breeding pouch. Below you will see a fantastic video of a male giving...

Delicious seahorse wedding stationery

Posted by Rill in Seahorse Crafts | 5 comments While browsing the excellent website Etsy I came across this delicious seahorse-themed wedding stationery. Called "Seahorse Bliss" this design comes from the shop ExQuisiteInVitation owned and operated by Chonte Simmons from Florida. When my husband and I got married we were too poor for a big "do" so we only had close family around. If we did it again now this would be exactly the sort of stationery we'd want to use! On the right you can see the reply card and "save the date" tag. Click on the image to see more pictures of this stationery. Click here to go directly to the webpage where you can order...

Pregnant male weedy seadragon video

Posted by Rill in Seahorse Videos | 0 comments Thanks to Nicola Stephenson who shared this with me on Facebook. One of the most enduringly fascinating aspects of seahorses and seadragons is the fact that the male cares for the babies until they hatch. The female lays her eggs into a sac or onto the tail of the male and he carries them until the young are born. Here is an absolutely beautiful extract from the BBC One documentary Life which shows the courtship dance of the weedy seadragons and some incredible footage of the male giving...

Continuous wire sculpture seahorses

Posted by Rill in Seahorse Crafts | 0 comments LaVern David Thompson is a wire sculpture artist based in the Virgin Islands. I was very excited when I found his website this morning. He has created some truly stunning sea creature pieces including a bunch of seahorses. According to the site, wire sculptures are available in sizes from six to eighteen inches and cost between $30 and $85. You can even order custom pieces which start at $75. Shipping and handling are extra. I strongly suggest that you check out his site and all the wonderful sculptures he has to...

My knitted seahorse

Posted by Rill in Seahorse Crafts | 5 comments So I finally got around to knitting the vintage seahorse pattern I found on eBay. It only took me a couple of hours to make and the pattern was easy to follow. Instead of using the yarn suggested in the pattern I used some left-over sock yarn in ocean-inspired colours, and because I didn't have any felt I made the seahorse's eyes from turquoise seed beads. The end result was much smaller than the one suggested in the pattern because I used size 2 needles and sock yarn - the piece measures just 5 inches. I gave it to my husband as a Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year) present - now I just have to keep it...

Seahorse graffiti in New York

Posted by Rill in Seahorse Pictures | 0 comments An artist only identified as "Robert" has produced a stunning pair of graffiti seahorses on a Brooklyn wall using stencils he created himself. The subject of whether graffiti can be considered art is a controversial one - especially since the elusive UK artist Banksy has started making a small fortune selling his work. It's so subjective - when I lived in London I always got a kick out of spotting another one of Banksy's works - especially in obscure, out-of-the-way places. I always felt that they added to the environment - making it seem less drab and dreary. And Banksy's work is very funny and...