Detecting secrets about seahorses sperm

In yellow seahorses, males carry eggs in a small bag and assume responsibility for childbirth. They are the most effective sperm use in animals.

" In the end, we discovered the mechanism of fertilization of seahorses, one of the mysteries that has not been noticed until now, " said Professor Bill Holt of the London Association of Zoology.

After observing and filming the mating behavior of the yellow seahorses, Holt and colleagues discovered that they are animals with a more efficient fertilization mechanism than humans and most other species.

(Photo: linsdomain) " Male yellow seahorses produce two types of sperm. But more surprisingly, the male spins sperm into the water so that the sperm swim to the egg bag on his own body. they ", he said. " We can't explain how that process is going on ."

All that seahorses have to do is put the eggs in the male's pocket - a process that lasts 5-10 seconds. Sperm must also find its way into the bag in time, because once the egg is in, the bag will close and no matter can pass through.

While the study focused on yellow seahorses - a species that lives in Southeast Asia, Australia and Japan - Holt believes that all seahorses breed according to the golden seahorses.

A mature yellow seahorse is 8 cm long and lives about 5 years. While humans can produce several billion sperm in a fertilization but only " produce " one or two new individuals, seahorses can produce about 100 juveniles with the same number of sperms.

"If they only release a few hundred sperm and make hundreds of young, that would be a miracle in nature," Holt commented.

Although there is an effective fertilization mechanism, currently, seahorses are classified by the World Conservation Organization as endangered species due to environmental pollution and widespread fishing.

Viet Linh