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A female and male Crested Kingfisher (Megaceryle lugubris) at Asahikawa city in Hokkaido, Japan.

NEW SPECIES ALERT: CUTE PYGMY SEAHORSE DISCOVERED IN JAPAN

An international team of marine biologists has discovered a new species seahorse in the waters off Izu Islands, southeast Japan. 

Named Japanese pygmy seahorses, or Hachijo-tatsu in japanese (Hippocampus japapigu), is diminutive in size, with 1.36-2.6 cm, long. The Japanese pygmy seahorse live in close association with octocorals, colonial hydrozoans, bryozoans, seagrass and algae. 

Japan is recognized as a global hotspot of marine biodiversity, with 53 recorded species of syngnathids,  family of fish which includes seahorses, pipefishes, and allies, this country have around ten species of seahorses of which four are true pygmy seahorses. This new species represent the fifth pygmy seahorse species to Japan.

Photo:  Japanese Pygmy Seahorse in situ, Hachijo-jima Island, Izu Islands, Japan at 15 m depth, photo by Richard Smith.

Reference: Short et al., 2018.  Hippocampus japapigu, a new species of pygmy seahorse from Japan, with a redescription of H.pontohi (Teleostei, Syngnathidae). ZooKeys

watch the new species on video