[Animals] More than 70 sea dragon eggs hatch with healthy young at the Birch Aquarium in the US

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Strong and independent: This is how dozens of sea dragon hatchlings were born in San Diego, after decades of conservation efforts.
The news came in January 2023. After years of waiting, the Birch Aquarium in the United States announced that one of its sea dragons had become pregnant. The specialists who dealt with the case did not skimp on describing the phenomenon as "a unique conception of its kind". A month later, the eggs hatched by this yellow male finally hatched.

In all, 70 healthy sea dragon pups resulted from this pregnancy. After hatching deep purple eggs, the babies are under close observation by conservators at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego. In a statement, the scientists welcomed the development, as "they are incredibly difficult to breed and breed in captivity."

More context: They capture the first pregnant male sea dragon of 2023 in a US aquarium

A success for the conservation of the species

Researchers have documented the process since its inception. After an intense mating dance, the sea dragon became pregnant for the first time in the year. In itself, this was a remarkable development, as the species is listed as 'near threatened' on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List.

Despite multiple attempts around the world, only a few facilities have successfully hatched sea dragon hatchlings. In this regard, Leslee Matsushige, who directs Birch Aquarium's seahorse and sea dragon breeding programs, explained that the institution has worked to achieve this for decades:

“THIS IS HUGE FOR US”, DECLARED THE SPECIALIST IN AN EMAIL. “THIS IS A VERY CHALLENGING BUT EXCITING PROCESS. WE HAVE HAD SOME PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE BREEDING YOUNG SEA DRAGONS, SO WE HOPE TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN BREEDING AN EVEN GREATER NUMBER OF BABIES THIS YEAR.”

She knows more: Why do male seahorses get pregnant?

A genetic and conservation challenge

For now, the baby sea dragons will be cared for 'behind the scenes', to ensure that they can reach adulthood without problems. However, the researchers revealed the following characteristics of the new babies:

They began to be born on February 26
They continued to hatch until March 2.
Currently, they measure 2.5 centimeters
weigh less than 1 gram

They are expected to grow up to 38 centimeters by the time they reach adulthood. Although they are still very young, sea dragons are solitary animals. At birth, they already have enough characteristics to be very independent and feed on their own. Therefore, the role of the father has ended.

Jenn Nero Moffatt, senior director of animal care, science and conservation at the aquarium, explains that sea dragon care is relatively new to science. The first approaches were achieved in the 90s, details the specialist. Therefore, the care of these offspring is a genetic and conservation challenge for the institution.

https://www.ngenespanol.com/animales/nacen-70-crias-de-dragon-marino/