l42 Hawaiian Fishes 



This rare squirrel fish is reddish color in life and reaches a length of 

 about six inches. It is an uncommon fish and is known only from the 

 Hawaiian Islands. 



THE PIPE FISH AND SEA HORSE FAMILY 



6A Family Syngnathidae (Hippocampidae) 



This family includes both the sea horses and the pipe fishes. The pipe 

 fishes include the straight individuals, while the sea horses have a prehensile 

 tail and a turn in the neck which gives them their horse- like appearance. 



The bodies of these fishes are long and slender and are covered with 

 bony rings and plates which are firmly connected together. The heads 

 of these fishes are usually long and slender and have a tube-like snout 

 at the end of which is placed a pair of short toothless jaws. The members 

 of this family range in length from two to twelve inches. 



These fishes have a very curious matrimonial arrangement. The male 

 fish contains an egg pouch on its abdomen composed of two folds of skin. 

 Into this pouch the female places the eggs which she has laid. The eggs 

 remain in this pouch until they hatch, then the pouch opens and the 

 young escape to begin life for themselves. 



The sea horses spend their life crawling over seaweed looking for 

 the tiny creatures on which they feed. They eat diatoms, small Crustacea, 

 and other creatures living among the seaweeds. They are poor swimmers, 

 but are widely distributed by ocean currents. They inhabit all warm seas 

 and sometimes enter fresh water. 



Of more than 150 known species, at least seven are known from 

 the Hawaiian Islands. 



Pipe Fish 



64-1 Syngnathoides biaculeatus (Bloch) 

 This pipe fish is full brown in color and reaches a length of nearly 

 twelve inches. It has been recorded from the East Indies, New Guinea, 

 New Caledonia, Samoa, Guam, and from the Hawaiian Islands. 



Pipe Fish 



64-2 Doryrhamphus melanopleura (Bleeker) 

 This pipe fish reaches a length of about three inches and is found 

 from the Island of Mauretius through the East Indies to Samoa, Japan, 

 and the Hawaiian Islands. 



