male probably does not exceed a dozen. But she is 

 an impartial lover, and any likely-looking posses- 

 sor of a pouch is apt to be impressed into becoming 

 her temporary spouse. It appears that the ovigerous 

 pouch is perfectly adapted to the purpose it serves. 

 Not only is it fitted to receive and incubate the 

 eggs, but also it supplies nourishment and shelter 

 to the new-hatched young. A mucous membrane 

 lines the interior, and this has the faculty of secret- 

 ing a foam-like substance on which the baby sea- 

 horses are supposed to subsist. Prior to this most 

 peculiar kind of impregnation, the pouch walls are 

 thick and well stored with fat; with the presence 

 of the eggs, the organ distends and looks turgid; 

 but by the time the young finally escape from this 

 combined nursery and cradle, it is hanging like a 

 limp and flabby sack. 



It has been asserted by some that the male for- 

 cibly ejects its living burden when the food be- 

 comes exhausted from the membrane of the bag. 

 And to effect this release, it is further stated, the 

 parent employs his tail — bending this appendage 

 upward like an inverted crook and literally 

 squeezing out the contents of the pouch. Then, 

 again, it is said that he presses his pouch against 



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