Hippocampus bargibanti - Pygmy Seahorses

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FateX8

Member
I was wondering if anyone has any experience with these guys, as in what was your set-up like?
I have a 7gal mini-bow just sitting there with 2x32w pc's so i thought a nice seahorse tank would be cool and since the H. bargibanti only gets to about 3cm I figured that would be perfect. I don't know much about them and when I try to search for them on a search engine I usually get stuff about their natural locations but nothing on care.
TIA,
Mike
 
K

kwajgal1990

New Member
How did it go with your Hippocampus bargibanti? I'm just wondering where you got them. I raise dwarf seahorses, but it would be my dream come true to raise a pair of pygmies!!! :fishy:
 
panmanmatt

panmanmatt

Well-Known Member
H. barbiganti are not available in the hobby. They have a symbiotic relationship with the gorgonians on which they live and have not been successfully kept once removed from it.

Due to their small size it is not even known what their food requirements are as even rotifers are too large for them.

This is one of those species that are better off left in the ocean.
 
K

kwajgal1990

New Member
Oh, and it's easy to keep them out of the filters. I have dwarf seahorses who have babies all the time. They're tiny! I just keep a sponge filter over the intake spout. They need to live in a really small tank anyway in order to keep the density of live baby brine high enough for them to feed. The tank is small and low flow.
 
panmanmatt

panmanmatt

Well-Known Member
kwajgal1990 said:
Oh, and it's easy to keep them out of the filters. I have dwarf seahorses who have babies all the time. They're tiny! I just keep a sponge filter over the intake spout. They need to live in a really small tank anyway in order to keep the density of live baby brine high enough for them to feed. The tank is small and low flow.
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H. barbiganti adults are about the size of H. zosterae babies. I wouldn't even imagine trying to find a sponge small enough to stop the babies from getting through and still moving water efficiently.
 
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kwajgal1990

New Member
Baby zosterae are not nearly small enough to get sucked through the filter. They're small, but not that small. I was surprised the first time I saw them. The babies are big enough to eat baby brine from the beginning.

My erectus pair had babies last year, and the zosterae babies are actually not that different in size. The zosterae give birth to fewer babies (3-35 typically) than the larger seahorses, but the babies are actually hardier and seem more well-developed at birth.

I'm not talking about the sponge filters that go on the inside, like the Fluvals. The pores on those are too big, even if you cut one to use on the intake. I use black cylindrical small-pored sponges. Most of the fish stores in my area sell packs of one or two of them. Lots of people around here use them in their fry tanks. They are commonly used in ponds, also.

I'm at work right now, but if you need one, I can look up the brand name when I get home. Some of the baby brine do get sucked through, so a couple of times a day, I turn the filter off for about a half an hour while I feed them, and I clean the sponge very regularly. My seahorses are doing great. I have one batch of 3 week-olds and one batch of 1 week-olds as we speak. Let me know if you want more info on the sponge.
 
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kwajgal1990

New Member
I forgot to address the water movement. They need gentle flow, which I achieve with a mini combo skimmer/filter ("Nano"-something) with the sponge attached to the intake. The water flow is low enough for the ponies but strong enough for the corals and macro algae I have in with them.

In my other pony tank, I use an Elite 5 with a sponge on it. The flow in that one is lower, but it still works well as long as I keep it clean.
 
SubRosa

SubRosa

Well-Known Member
panmanmatt said:
H. barbiganti are not available in the hobby. They have a symbiotic relationship with the gorgonians on which they live and have not been successfully kept once removed from it.

Due to their small size it is not even known what their food requirements are as even rotifers are too large for them.

This is one of those species that are better off left in the ocean.
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Bargibanti are indeed available in the hobby.Just today I received info on a variety of tropical and temperate species that are available to me as tank raised specimens.Included was H. Bargibanti.I can have them as of 7/7.Doesn't mean I will, but they are indeed available.

John
 
panmanmatt

panmanmatt

Well-Known Member
SubRosa said:
Bargibanti are indeed available in the hobby.Just today I received info on a variety of tropical and temperate species that are available to me as tank raised specimens.Included was H. Bargibanti.I can have them as of 7/7.Doesn't mean I will, but they are indeed available.

John
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I highly doubt they are truly TR bargibanti. At least 75% of seahorse on the wholesale lists are mislabeled. If they are indeed bargibanti, I would love to get some info on who is breeding/raising them.

John, where are you located?
 
SubRosa

SubRosa

Well-Known Member
I'm outside of Norristown PA.I haven't been able to contact the supplier to ask for further details,but I definitely will tomorrow.FWIW this wasn't a normal list,just a flyer he sent out announcing the new supplies.Other species on the list were Minotaurs, Barbouris and Kudas of course, and Abdominalis and Breviceps for temperates.The list included photos, and Bargibantis are pretty hard to mistake for anything else.I 've been pretty happy in the past with this guy, so for now I'll take him at his word.

John
 
panmanmatt

panmanmatt

Well-Known Member
Thanks John. I would definitely be interested in any further info you can get. Minotaurs and bargibanti are not something you see/hear of often. I would love to get some ore info on the breeding of them.
 
SubRosa

SubRosa

Well-Known Member
OK Matt I spoke to my supplier.They are indeed Bargibantis, and I was told they are being bred in Oz.The guy has been working with them for a few years now and has it down.To be honest it's not a fish I would bring in on spec, at least during the slow season.If I can get any more info I will pass it on.I'm completely unfamiliar with Minotaurs.Any info you have would be appreciated,ie. size, notes on captive care, etc.Thanks!

John
 
panmanmatt

panmanmatt

Well-Known Member
Thanks John. If you could find out who the breeder is that would be great. I have spoken to some of the largest breeders in Oz about these and none of them are breeding them. Same goes for the minotaurs. They can not be legally exported/imported under CITIES regulations unless they are CB specimens. CITIES has a 10cm size restriction and neither of these species reaches that size. Bargibanti are about 2.4cm and minotaurs are about 5cm. Both species are endemic to Aus and they are really strict with making sure everything meets the restrictions.

All of the bargibanti I have seen/heard of coming have been a by catch of collecting the gorgonia they live on. Due to their small size and excellent camouflage, they are sometimes passed through without being seen.

I have no care info on the minotaurs at this time but I can try and dig something up. Let me contact some of my people in Aus and see what they can help out with.

Thanks again for getting me some info. I really appreciate it. As you may be aware I help run one of, if not the, largest seahorse dedicated websites and am always looking for info on newly available species. We are currently working on a few new/updated projects about what species are available so this could help quite a bit.
 
SeahorseBT

SeahorseBT

Active Member
wow, can you imagine how small those babies must be? I bet he uses seawater to raise them b/c the parents need food smaller than rotifers, so th babies must need something even smaller.
 
SubRosa

SubRosa

Well-Known Member
SeahorseBT said:
wow, can you imagine how small those babies must be? I bet he uses seawater to raise them b/c the parents need food smaller than rotifers, so th babies must need something even smaller.
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Maybe, but consider H. zosterae.The adult size is similar to H. bargibanti, and the ponies are larger than some "full size" species.You just don't know til you know!

Matt I'll do my best to get a name, but I was unaware of the 10 cm. size limit and the strictness of CITES enforcement in Oz has me wondering a bit myself now.I didn't push for a name when I spoke to my supplier but I definitely will now!I'll let you know how it turns out.

John
 
B

bunky

New Member
Hi did you have any luck with the bargibanti am interested in these my self.
SubRosa said:
Maybe, but consider H. zosterae.The adult size is similar to H. bargibanti, and the ponies are larger than some "full size" species.You just don't know til you know!

Matt I'll do my best to get a name, but I was unaware of the 10 cm. size limit and the strictness of CITES enforcement in Oz has me wondering a bit myself now.I didn't push for a name when I spoke to my supplier but I definitely will now!I'll let you know how it turns out.

John
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