I raise seahorses in Barre, MA. Here are a few of my thoughts (for what it is worth
):
Maintaining healthy, happy seahorses that live many years in a home aquarium is possible. An understanding of the basics of maintaining a saltwater tank is critical including proper water filtration, a good salt mix, a well cycled system and compatible inhabitants are a must.
The best way to keep seahorses healthy is to provide proper nutrition in a high water quality environment.
The Tank
Our recommendations on tank size for the long-term health and happiness of seahorses is 10 gallons per seahorse minimum. So for a Hippocampus erectus pair, a 20 gallon tank is the minimum size recommended. Tank height is also very important. A seahorse pair will greet each other morning an evening and perform a beautiful mating dance. Successful mating requires that the horses have enough unobstructed room for up and down and side to side swimming. A minimum tank height of 21 inches is recommended, 24 inches or taller is preferred.
Lighting
Seahorses thrive under a wide range of lighting from strong reef lighting to standard fluorescent bulbs. If using strong lighting - make sure there are shaded areas within the tank so the seahorses can get out of the strong light.
Flow
A seahorse tank requires good water movement throughout the tank, no dead spots. Seahorses even enjoy playing a bit in the current but also need areas of low flow to rest but there should be no dead spots within the tank for detritus to build up.
A flow-rate of 8 – 10x the tank volume per hour usually works well. The best way we’ve found to establish good flow and provide rest areas is to set the rock-work up in the tank so as to block and slow the flow in some areas.
Filtration
Live rock and a good protein skimmer are excellent ways to maintain a healthy environment for seahorses. Carbon filtration is also beneficial.
Temperature range: 73 – 78 F is an acceptable range for keeping seahorses. To maintain healthy animals it is best that there be no more than a 3 degree F temperature change during the day / night cycle. If your tank is at 73 F in the morning before the lights come on it should not go higher than 76 F during the day and this change should be gradual.
Seahorses can be maintained at higher temperatures but there are benefits to running your tank on the cooler side. Seahorses breathe dissolved oxygen in the water through their gills. As water temperature increases oxygen solubility decreases. Cooler water has a higher concentration of dissolved oxygen available.
Biological processes are also very dependent on temperature. Seahorses require less oxygen at cooler temperatures than at warmer and bacteria that is harmful to seahorses proliferates more readily in a warmer tank. Heaters should be located in the sump or appropriately made / covered to prevent burns should the seahorse hitch to the heater.
Salinity - Seahorse can tolerate a wide range of salinity levels but they cannot tolerate sudden changes. A specific gravity range of 1.018 – 1.025 is acceptable. Maintaining the specific gravity on the lower end 1.018 helps to reduce the possible infiltration of parasites. Whatever range you are at it should be stable +/- 0.001.
Tank mates - seahorses examine their food before eating so they are kind of slow eaters they should be maintained with inly extremely peaceful species of fish (lists can be found online) to minimize food competition. Banggai cardinalfish or gobies are great tank mates - peppermint shrimp are also good and they provide a nice supply of larva to the tank. Non-aggressive corals such as soft corals, mushrooms, gorgonians, sponges all are fine and provide nice color. macro algae is also very beneficial.
Purchase captive bred seahorses and make sure they look healthy - clear eyes, no sunken chests, no abrasions on skin or bubbles on skin. The seahorse should not look bloated.
Food - make sure the horses you get are eating frozen mysis (brine will not sustain seahorses) and you watch them eat. High quality frozen mysis will provide the nutrition that they need for their life. That along with good water quality will provide many years of enjoyment.
Make sure your tank is well cycled and as always do your research.
Good luck
