Horse Sense
Sea horses, sea dragons and pipefish are propelling their way to a new exhibit at the Waikiki Aquarium, with a celebration scheduled for its opening Friday.
The "Amazing Adaptations" exhibit stretches along more than 60 feet of gallery wall at the aquarium, and will provide guests with an opportunity to view the diversity of this unusual family of fishes called Syngnathidae.
Keiki ages 12 and under are invited to wear sea horse costumes to receive free admission on Friday and visit on-site experts offering fun, interactive activities for the whole family.
In all fishes classified as Syngnathidae, the male carries the eggs until they hatch. Other shared characteristics include elongated bodies enclosed in bony armor and tubular fused snouts.
There are nearly 200 known pipefish species, 47 known sea horse species and only two known sea dragon species in the world, according to the aquarium.
Sea horses, named for their equine appearance, range from about half an inch to 14 inches and have a prehensile tail that they use to grasp plants, rocks and coral. Their scientific name, Hippocampus, comes from the Greek words "hippos," meaning horse, and "kampos," meaning sea monster.
They are not very good swimmers as they propel themselves with a small fin on their backs. They suck up plankton and small crustaceans with their long snouts. The female deposits eggs into a pouch on the male sea horse’s abdomen, where they are fertilized and incubated until they hatch.
Sea dragons, found in the cool waters of southern and western Australia and Tasmania, are among the most ornately colored animals in the sea. They have gossamer appendages extending from their bodies that provide camouflage among coastal seaweed forests.
The sea dragon female deposits eggs on a sticky patch on the underside of the male’s tail. Male sea dragons carry the eggs for four to six weeks until they hatch.
Pipefish, commonly found in seagrass beds, have long, thin bodies with tubular snouts and small mouths that create a vacuum to suck up small prey. Most pipefish are masters of camouflage, but a few are brightly colored tropical and subtropical species.
The female deposits eggs in a pouch or patch on the male’s underbelly, where they are fertilized and incubated until they hatch.
Besides two 25-gallon sea horse nursery tanks that will display juvenile sea horses bred at the aquarium, there will also be a 320-gallon native Hawaiian sea horse and pipefish exhibit plus a 15-gallon miniature sea horse exhibit. Pipefish will be displayed in both coral and grass-flat environments.
Other featured species include the weedy sea dragon, smooth sea horse, red-stripe pipefish, dwarf sea horse and potbelly sea horse.
Sea dragons
>> Endemic to waters off south and west Australia
>> The color and number of appendages of a weedy sea dragon varies based on location, depth and age.
>> Large, male weedy sea dragons can carry up to 300 eggs at one time on patches under their tails.
Pipefish
>> Rely on small fins for movement, making them slow swimmers. Often found swaying in blades of seagrass.
>> Redstripe Pipefish (Dunckerocampus baldwini) is endemic to the Hawaiian region, typically found in caves or against rocks up to 160 feet deep.
>> Bluestripe pipefish (Doryrhamphus excisus) picks parasites from other fish, including moray eels.
Source: Waikiki Aquarium
Nina Wu, Star-Advertiser
Used ocean gear can be made new for kids
Got an old, dinged-up beginner surfboard taking up garage space? Up the creek with a paddle but no canoe? Make sure your old sports equipment fulfills its destiny and help local children enjoy the ocean by recycling it through Na Kama Kai, a nonprofit organization dedicated to ocean awareness and education.
"We’ve been slowly collecting surfboards from all the different entities that Iknow," said Duane DeSoto, a professional surfer and founder of Na Kama Kai. "Igot surf shops that give them to me … and just regular people in the public who we’ve gotten to through word of mouth."
DeSoto and his staff will repair the equipment to make it seaworthy, then make it available to any kid who requests it.
"We don’t screen their financial background," DeSoto said. "If they’re asking, obviously they need it. So we’re keeping it simple to provide access."
Na Kama Kai accepts more than just boards. "We collect leashes, we collect fins, we collect paddles for kayaks. We collect any kind of ocean equipment so that when the request comes we have stuff on hand that we can distribute," said DeSoto, who recently donated 30 surfboards to children on Molokai for a surf contest.
DeSoto said it is important that old boards be kept out of the landfill. Though some boards he gets are beyond repair, most of them are fixed. At the moment he has more than 200 boards at his house available for donation.
Donated equipment can be left with Bella Pietra, a Honolulu marble, tile and stone company at 701 N. Nimitz Highway, or visit nakamakai.org/
recycle-program to tell the organization what equipment you intend to donate. Requests for equipment can be made by downloading and filling out an application form available at the same website.
Steven Mark, Star-Advertiser
Battleship memorial to host ‘steel picnic’ on July Fourth
Celebrate Independence Day with a picnic and a bit of history at the Battleship Missouri Memorial.
The USS Missouri will host an evening of fun and spectacular fireworks to commemorate the 238th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Visitors are welcome to bring picnicking gear (no glass or grills) to enjoy a "steel beach picnic," a Navy slang term for a day off that is usually spent barbecuing, on the pier. If you need something to fill out your meal, food and drinks will be available at the ship’s store.
Popular activities for children will include paper sailboat racing, signal-flag making and the game Battleship. Tours will be available of Mighty Mo.
Festivities begin at 6 p.m., with fireworks at 9 p.m. Cost is $10, $5 for children (ages 4-12). Kids 3 and younger are free. Shuttle service will be available from the Pearl Harbor Visitor Center. For tickets visitbit.ly/ussmsteelpicnic. For information about the USS Missouri, call 877-644-4896 or visit USSMissouri.org.
Steven Mark, Star-Advertiser
