About Hippocampus pontohi Lourie & Kuiter, 2008
The weedy pygmy seahorse (Hippocampus pontohi Lourie & Kuiter, 2008), also called Pontoh's pygmy seahorse, is a small fish that reaches a maximum total length of approximately 1.7 centimeters, making it one of the smallest known seahorse species. Its body is small and slender, with a prehensile tail. The head is relatively large, accounting for roughly 25% of the animal's total body length. It has prominent eyes and a moderately long snout that lacks a bulbous tip. When viewed in profile, the coronet angles upward toward the rear. Small bulbs may be present on the animal's trunk and tail. Distinctive red branching filaments grow on the coronet and the widest section of the back. The body has a whitish base color, with yellow to pinkish coloring on the head and the back side of the body. Thin red lines extend from the base of the cutaneous filaments on the back, and the tail is marked with red bands. This species has been recorded in the central Indo-Pacific, specifically in eastern Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. It inhabits current-exposed reef walls located between 11 and 25 meters depth, where these walls are rich in either Halimeda plants or the hydroid Aglaophenia cupressina.
