Scientific Name	Hippocampus kuda   Pronounce			by: Lab of Fish Ecol. and Evo., BRCAS
Author	Bleeker, 1852	Depth	0 - 68M
Chinese	庫達海馬	Poisonous Fish	No
Family_Chinese	海龍科	Economic Fish	Yes
Family	F295　Syngnathidae	Edible Fish	No	Chinese In Mainland China	管海馬
Max Length	30 cm	Aquarium Fish	Yes	Common Name	海馬
Distribution in World	India Ocean to Pacific Ocean	Distribution in Taiwan	West、South、North、North East、PonFu、ShaoLiuChew
Habitats	Coral、Benthos、Estuary、Coastal、 Lagoon、Coral&Sand	Holotype Locality	Singapore
Synonyms	Hippocamphus kuda, Hippocampus aterrimus, Hippocampus chinensis, Hippocampus hilonis, Hippocampus horai, Hippocampus kuda multiannularis, Hippocampus melanospilos, Hippocampus moluccensis, Hippocampus novaehebudorum, Hippocampus polytaenia, Hippocampus raji, Hippocampus rhynchomacer, Hippocampus taeniops ...all 15..
Reference	臺灣魚類誌(沈等, 1993)；Fishes of Japan(Nakabo, 2002)；Fishbase(2005)；The Live Marine Resources of the Western Central Pacific, Vol.4(FAO,1999)  沈世傑 編 Shih-Chieh Shen ed. 1993 Carpenter, K. E. etc. 1999 Nakabo T. 2002 Nakabo T. 2002
Specimen List	ASIZP0055360. ASIZP0058215. ASIZP0058540. ASIZP0073317. ASIZP0073318. ASIZP0073319. ASIZP0074478. ASIZP0074543. ASIZP0074599. ASIZP0805792. ASIZP0805793. ASIZP0805794. ASIZP0915792. ASIZP0915793. ASIZP0915794. FRIP00545. FRIP00546. NMMBP01075. NMMBP02272. NMMBP03312. NMMSTP00293. NMMSTP01554. NMNSF00406. NMNSF00439. NMNSF00976. USNM00076604.
Common Name	Oceanic sea horse; Sea horse; Oceanic sea horse red; Yellow seahorse; Spotted seahorse; Yellow sea horse
Redlist Status	IUCN Redlist: Vulnerable(VU) A4cd 2003-04-30   CITES Appendix 2
Characteristic	Rings: 11+36 (34-38). Snout length: 2.3 (2.0-2.6) in head length. Dorsal fin rays: 17-18 covering 2+1 rings. Pectoral fin rays: 16 (15-18). Coronet: low-medium, rounded, overhanging at the back, often with a cup-like depression in the top; sometimes with broad flanges; not spiny. Spines: low, rounded bumps only. Other distinctive characters: deep head; deep body; thick snout. Color pattern: often totally black with a grainy texture; alternatively pale yellow or cream with fairly large, dark spots (especially females); may be sandy colored, blending in with the surroundings.
habitats	Inhabits seagrass and marine algae areas of estuaries and seaward reefs; also on steep mud slopes. Found in open water and attached to drifting Sargassum up to 20 km from shore. Adults in pairs.
Distribution	Distributed in the Indo-Pacific from Pakistan and India to southern Japan, Hawaii, and the Society Islands. It is mainly found in northern and southern Taiwanese waters.
Utility	Very popular aquarium fish. Highly valued species in traditional Chinese medicine. Has been reared in captivity. International trade is monitored through a licensing system (CITES II, since 5.15.04).