Fascinated by seahorses? Two hundred of these magical little creatures have just been let loose in Sydney Harbour, at Balmoral Beach, thanks to a major conservation project. This particular seahorse conservation project – the Sydney Seahorse Project – has been brought to life by the Sydney Institute of Marine Science (SIMS), and it's already had huge success in boosting the population of these dainty little ocean animals. This release comes following the largest-ever seahorse release, which took place in Sydney this time last year, and an additional release that saw 100 seahorses released into a tidal pool in Sydney back in December.
The Sydney Seahorse Project has been supported by a $359,000 grant from the Commonwealth Government's Saving Native Species program, with the aim of boosting the natural population of White’s Seahorses – one of only four species of seahorses found in NSW waters. Last week, on Wednesday, June 12, the project released a herd of 200 teeny creatures into Sydney Harbour at Balmoral Beach – using specially designed “seahorse hotels” to mimic the creature's natural habitat and help them to thrive. Next week, a further 90 seahorse are set to be released in Gamay (Botany Bay), in collaboration with Traditional Owners, the Gamay Rangers.
The herd of "super seahorses" (named for their robust size and good health), were carefully bred and raised at SIMS’s aquarium over the past four months, and their release comes following a larger release (the world’s largest seahorse release ever) of 384 similarly “super” seahorses back in 2023. A 9-month post-release SCUBA survey at Chowder Bay, where the 2023 release took place recorded 50 tagged seahorses in 90 minutes, with more than 20 pregnant males (seahorses, hey?!).
So it sounds like coming up close to a magical little seahorse could be very possible – just be careful not to touch them if you do see them out in the big blue. You can learn more about the Sydney Seahorse Project over here.
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