Bubbles,the Knysna seahorse

Bubbles is a Knysna seahorse on a mission around the world to make people more aware of his family and why they are the only species that is listed as the MOST endangered species in the world by the IUCN.He also would like to go and visit all his cousins around the world and have his picture taken with as many different live species as possible(between 30 and 40 different species),before returning to South Africa to find his soul mate.

The Knysna seahorse is the only endemic seahorse to South Africa and is found only in three estuaries in the Southern Cape region.

They are unique in appearance, resembling a combination of various animals: a horse-like head,monkey-like prehensile tail, chameleon-like eyes and insect-like body. It is classified as a fish, equipped with a backbone, gills, swim bladder and fins.

The seahorse is an ambush predator that is capable of changing colour to blend in with its environment,feeding on zooplankton.
Seahorses are also the only fish species where the male experiences a true pregnancy, lasting up to two or three weeks before giving birth to between 5 and 200 youngsters. There is no parental care after birth and the parents will resume mating soon after.
Seahorses mate monogamously for the entire breeding season with a realistic flirtatious dance to reinforce their connection and helps the pair to synchronize reproduction. If a mate dies it is extremely difficult to find a mate that is in the same reproductive cycle.

They are extremely threatened by development in and around the estuarine area, causing changes in current flow resulting in change in temperatures which ultimately changes aquatic vegetation.This causes them to be washed ashore during frequent storms as they prefer the shallow waters. Crabs, larger fish species and mankind also poses a danger on a day-to-day basis (development and collecting seahorses,even if its completely ilegal).