Check List (May 2022)

New record of the Japanese Seahorse Hippocampus mohnikei Bleeker, 1853 (Syngnathiformes: Syngnathidae) in Hong Kong waters

  • Sam King Fung Yiu,
  • Cher Fuk Yat Chow,
  • Steven Hong Tai Tsang,
  • Xiong Zhang,
  • Jeffery Tzu Hao Chung,
  • Shadow Ying Tung Sin,
  • Wing Kuen Chow,
  • Leo Lai Chan

DOI
https://doi.org/10.15560/18.3.455
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 18, no. 3
pp. 455 – 461

Abstract

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A new record of Hippocampus mohnikei Bleeker, 1853 was confirmed in Hong Kong through morphological and molecular identification. It is highly possible that there is an established population of H. mohnikei in Hong Kong due to continuous sightings by citizen scientists in the past nine years. The record is significant from a biogeographical perspective as it connects the distributions of known populations in northern China and Japan to those spanning Thailand to India. This further affirms the status of Hong Kong as a hotspot for seahorse biodiversity and conservation in China.

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