Context: Extensive fishing off the Coromandel coast could be forcing the great seahorse to migrate laboriously toward Odisha.

• It is likely a response to extensive fishing activities around the southern coast of India.

Key highlights of the study

• Fishing is less intense in the Bay of Bengal off the Odisha coastline.

• The shallow coastal ecosystem of the eastern Indian State may not be the new comfort zone for the fish with a horse-like head.

• There are 46 species of seahorses reported worldwide.

• The coastal ecosystems of India house nine out of 12 species found in the Indo-Pacific, one of the hotspots of seahorse populations that are distributed across diverse ecosystems such as seagrass, mangroves, macroalgal beds, and coral reefs.

• These nine species are distributed along the coasts of eight States and five Union Territories from Gujarat to Odisha, apart from Lakshadweep and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

About the great seahorse (Hippocampus kelloggi)

• It is also known as Kellogg's seahorse is a species of fish in the family Syngnathidae.

• It is one of the largest of the 54 species of seahorse.

Conservation status

• IUCN status: Vulnerable (VU)

• CITES: Appendix II

• Distribution: It is found in the Indo-pacific region, specifically documented from the coast of East Africa to Japan. It was also recently identified around both northern and southern Australia.

• Habitat: They’re frequent in areas with an abundance of coral so they can latch on to something.

• Though often found in shallow waters, they have been recorded in depths of over 100 meters, with the deepest recorded seahorse at 152 meters below the surface.

• Threats: Overexploitation for traditional Chinese medicines and as ornamental fish, combined with general destructive fishing and fisheries bycatch.