Hi, seahorse friend!
skynesher/Getty Images
Seahorses can be as tiny as a grain of rice or more than a foot long. They also beat their small fins up to 70 times per second – about as fast as hummingbird wings. These cowboys of the sea are full of surprises!
Join Molly and co-host Noemi as they swim through an episode full of seahorse facts. They’ll hear from seahorse expert Heather Koldewey about what it’s like to swim with these fabulous little fish. Then they’ll head down to the beach to chat with a seahorse dad who’s expecting! Plus, an all-new mystery sound.
Additional resources:
- Learn more about Heather Koldewey’s work with Project Seahorse here.
- Watch a male seahorse give birth to 2,000 babies!
- Read about how you can help protect seahorses here.
Audio Transcript
Download transcript (PDF)
NOEMI: You're listening to Brains On!, where we're serious about being curious.
SPEAKER: Brains On! is supported in part by a grant from the National Science Foundation.
MOLLY BLOOM: Hey, Ruby. Want to play a game?
RUBY GUTHRIE: They don't call me Ruby "loves a good game" Guthrie for nothing, Molly.
MOLLY BLOOM: I've never heard anyone call you that.
RUBY GUTHRIE: It's true. See, it's even printed on my driver's license and my birth certificate.
MOLLY BLOOM: Huh, guess they really do call you that. Well, this is perfect because I thought we could play a game of 20 questions. I'll think of an animal, and you get to ask me 20 questions to figure out which animal it is.
RUBY GUTHRIE: Let's do it. OK, does the animal you're thinking of have a tail?
MOLLY BLOOM: Yes. It has a long, curly tail for grabbing on to stuff.
RUBY GUTHRIE: Ooh, ooh. OK, I know this. It's a monkey.
MOLLY BLOOM: Good guess, but no.
RUBY GUTHRIE: Ugh, OK. Does it have a pouch?
MOLLY BLOOM: It does have a pouch.
RUBY GUTHRIE: OK, it has a long tail and a pouch. Oh, it's got to be a kangaroo, right?
MOLLY BLOOM: It's not a kangaroo.
RUBY GUTHRIE: Jeez. A tail? A pouch? My next question was going to be if it lives in the ocean, but that seems unlikely.
MOLLY BLOOM: Uh, yes, it does live in the ocean, in shallow habitats along the coast, like coral reefs.
RUBY GUTHRIE: Wait for real? Is it some kind of fish?
MOLLY BLOOM: Yes, it is a fish.
RUBY GUTHRIE: Hold up. Molly, are you pulling my leg? What kind of fish has a pouch and a curly tail?
MOLLY BLOOM: I'll give you a hint.
[NEIGHS]
RUBY GUTHRIE: Oh, OK, a sea cowboy? Oh, a sea pony? No, sea monkey.
MOLLY BLOOM: No.
[NEIGHS]
RUBY GUTHRIE: Horses. Horses. Horses. Horses in the ocean. Oh, I got it. It's a seahorse!
MOLLY BLOOM: Yes, you got it, a seahorse.
RUBY GUTHRIE: Wait, a seahorse has a tail that can grab on to stuff, and a pouch?
MOLLY BLOOM: Yes, and that's not all. They also have--
RUBY GUTHRIE: Ah! Ah, ah! Spoiler alert, Molly. Don't tell me. I'm just about to listen to this episode of Brains On! about seahorses, right now.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
MOLLY BLOOM: You're listening to Brains On! from APM Studios. I'm Molly Bloom, and my cohost today is Noemi, from Minneapolis, Minnesota. Hi, Noemi.
NOEMI: Hey, Molly.
MOLLY BLOOM: Today we're talking about one of the most incredible creatures in the ocean, seahorses. We've gotten a lot of questions about seahorses over the years, like this one.
WESTON: Hello, my name is Weston.
SAWYER: Hi, my name is Sawyer. We're from Salt Lake City, Utah, and we want to know, how do seahorses swim?
MOLLY BLOOM: We're going to answer that question and more today. But first, Noemi, you've been interested in seahorses for a while, right?
NOEMI: Yes.
MOLLY BLOOM: Well, we have video proof of that because your mom shared a video of you talking about seahorses when you were three years old, and you already knew a lot about them.
[AUDIO PLAYBACK]
- Emi.
- What?
- Can you tell me some stuff about seahorses?
- They swim, and they don't use your dorsal fin.
- They don't use a dorsal fin? What kind of tails do they have?
- Prehensile tails.
[END PLAYBACK]
MOLLY BLOOM: That is so stinking cute. Oh my gosh. I don't think there's a lot of three-year-olds who know the word "prehensile."
NOEMI: Yeah.
MOLLY BLOOM: [LAUGHS]
NOEMI: I was definitely so into seahorses and animals when I was younger.
MOLLY BLOOM: So do you remember how you found out all those facts about seahorses?
NOEMI: No idea.
MOLLY BLOOM: [LAUGHS] And so, back then, do you remember being really into other animals, too? What were some of your other faves?
NOEMI: I remember that I really liked jaguars, and I really liked ring-tailed lemurs.
MOLLY BLOOM: So are you still interested in animals today?
NOEMI: I mean, I definitely don't research them as much as I did when I was younger, but yeah, I still love animals.
MOLLY BLOOM: How old are you now?
NOEMI: Now I'm 11.
MOLLY BLOOM: 11. OK, so that was eight long years ago. What's your favorite animal these days?
NOEMI: I can't choose a favorite.
MOLLY BLOOM: Too many wonderful animals.
NOEMI: Yeah.
MOLLY BLOOM: So, OK, let's have a top three. Could you do that?
NOEMI: OK.
MOLLY BLOOM: [LAUGHS]
NOEMI: I guess I like hawks and cats and, I guess, any species of bird.
MOLLY BLOOM: So cool. Have you ever seen a seahorse in real life?
NOEMI: No, I don't think so, at least not that I can remember.
MOLLY BLOOM: So, back then, you were into the prehensile tails, the dorsal fins, the having babies. Do you have any other things about seahorses that you love?
NOEMI: I love their camouflage. I love that they're like octopuses in that way, or they can blend in with their surroundings.
MOLLY BLOOM: So do you feel like you remember everything you knew about seahorses back then, or have you forgotten some of it?
NOEMI: I've definitely forgotten most of it.
MOLLY BLOOM: Excellent, so we're going to learn a lot today together. Seahorses are strange and wonderful animals.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
Technically, they're a type of fish, but they look really different from most other fishes. Instead of scales, seahorse bodies are covered in hard, bony plates, like armor.
NOEMI: They have long snouts and eyes that move independently in all directions, like a chameleon.
[BLINKING]
MOLLY BLOOM: Since their eyes can move in different directions, that means one eye can be looking forward while the other is looking behind them at the same time.
NOEMI: Seahorses also have a special, curly tail that they use to hold on to kelp, seagrass, and coral, like how a monkey or possum's tail holds on to a branch.
[BOING]
MOLLY BLOOM: Like Noemi said earlier, those are called prehensile tails, and seahorses are some of the only animals in the ocean that have them.
NOEMI: There are all different kinds of seahorses that live in oceans across the world.
MOLLY BLOOM: You can find them along the rocky shores of Ireland--
[DING]
--in Australia's Great Barrier Reef--
[DING]
--or even in kelp forests on the California coast.
[DING]
NOEMI: Some are as small as a grain of rice, while others are more than a foot long.
MOLLY BLOOM: Seahorses come in all different colors, too, from fiery red to bright yellow.
NOEMI: Some have long, spiky spines or bony knobs sticking off their bodies.
MOLLY BLOOM: Others are covered in beautiful patterns, like black-and-white stripes and tiny dots.
NOEMI: So cool. And get this-- they can even change colors. Their skin can switch colors to help them blend in with their surroundings. That's called camouflage.
MOLLY BLOOM: Sometimes they're so good at hiding that it's really hard to find them in the wild. We talked with Heather Koldewey about that. She's a marine biologist who cofounded a group called Project Seahorse, which works to protect seahorses in the wild.
NOEMI: Heather still remembers the first time she saw a wild seahorse. She was snorkeling at night in the Philippines.
[AUDIO PLAYBACK]
- That first moment of seeing one in the wild was quite extraordinary, just because I appreciated how very, very difficult it was. You paddle out over the reef. You drop into the water, which is sort of a mix of magical and spooky because it's all very sort of dark and mysterious. But you get these flashes of plankton glowing like sparkles, and it's like being surrounded by tinsel as you swim. And then, going through the water, you just have a flashlight under the water, and what you actually first see is their eyes' moving.
[END PLAYBACK]
MOLLY BLOOM: Seahorses have to be really good at hiding because lots of other creatures want to eat them, and they're not great at swimming away.
NOEMI: A seahorse holds its body straight up, with its head pointing toward the surface of the water and its tail facing toward the sea floor.
MOLLY BLOOM: When they swim in this upright position, it's pretty awkward. It would be like if you tried to swim while standing upright.
NOEMI: Much slower than when you lay on your stomach and swim with your hands in front of you and your feet behind you.
MOLLY BLOOM: Seahorses have one fin on their back that moves them forward, like a propeller, and smaller fins on their head that help them steer.
NOEMI: The fins beat up to 70 times per second, about as fast as a hummingbird's wings.
MOLLY BLOOM: But even so, their awkward swimming style makes them pretty slow. So if a predator comes along, seahorses probably won't be able to outswim it. Instead, they hide or blend in with their surroundings.
NOEMI: And being camouflaged has another big advantage. It helps seahorses catch their food.
MOLLY BLOOM: You might not think of seahorses as expert hunters, but picture this.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
A seahorse is hiding in a patch of seaweed, holding on to the plant with its grippy little tail, and it's waiting.
NOEMI: All different kinds of creatures pass by-- fish, sea turtles, sharks. The seahorse waits and watches.
MOLLY BLOOM: Suddenly, a tiny shrimp floats by in the water right next to the seahorse, and--
[SLURPING]
--it just sucks it in.
NOEMI: Heather says a seahorse's mouth has a special design to help it gulp food down really fast.
[AUDIO PLAYBACK]
- Basically, the mouth has become fused into a straw with a flap on the end. So, as the little shrimp swims by, the flap opens, and the seahorse sucks really hard. Now, if you think of drinking a bubble tea or something like that, where it's got a lump in it and you want to suck it really hard, then, basically, that's what that straw is doing. It's sucking in that shrimp as it swims by.
[END PLAYBACK]
NOEMI: So seahorses are basically sucking up tiny sea creatures just like they're sipping shrimp bubble tea.
[SLURPING]
MOLLY BLOOM: Another cool thing about seahorses is that they can make sounds.
[AUDIO PLAYBACK]
- There's some really curious things, like seahorses make noises. They click, and they grunt, and we don't really understand much about how seahorses and why seahorses make noises.
[END PLAYBACK]
MOLLY BLOOM: With their color-changing camouflage, fluttering fin propellers, and super-fast-sucking straw mouths, seahorses are some of the coolest animals in the ocean. Most of the time, things are pretty chill for our horsey pals.
NOEMI: Yeah, they just grab on to some seaweed and slurp up tiny shrimp.
MOLLY BLOOM: But lately, seahorses have been under threat-- in part, because people like to catch them and collect them. They sometimes get stuck in fishing nets meant for other animals, and their habitats are being destroyed, like coral reefs and kelp forests.
NOEMI: That's why Heather and her group, Project Seahorse, are trying to protect these little fishy friends.
MOLLY BLOOM: You know, Noemi, there's one more amazing thing about seahorses we haven't mentioned yet.
NOEMI: How they have their babies!
MOLLY BLOOM: Exactly. And I know just the seahorse to talk about that. How about we head over to the beach and see if we can find him?
NOEMI: I'm always up for a beach trip.
MOLLY BLOOM: Before we go searching for seahorses, let's take a little break, because it's time for the--
[MYSTERIOUS MUSIC]
SPEAKER: (WHISPERING) Mystery sound.
MOLLY BLOOM: Are you ready, Noemi?
NOEMI: Yes.
MOLLY BLOOM: Wonderful. Here it is.
[RATTLING, FLUTTERING]
Hmm, what do you think?
NOEMI: I think it could be someone typing or fluttering pages of a book or something.
MOLLY BLOOM: Hmm, typing or fluttering pages. Do you want to hear it again?
NOEMI: Yeah.
MOLLY BLOOM: OK, let's hear it.
[RATTLING, FLUTTERING]
OK, what do you think now?
NOEMI: OK, I still think it might be those two, but it could also be someone rattling something and something bumping around inside, maybe.
MOLLY BLOOM: OK, what do you think the thing rattling could possibly be?
NOEMI: I don't know.
MOLLY BLOOM: That's why it's a mystery sound-- because it's a mystery. Well, we'll hear it again, get another chance to guess, and hear the answer at the end of the show.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
We're working with our friends at Radiolab on an episode about naming objects in space, and it got us wondering about Earth's moon. Other planets in our solar system have moons with awesome names like Ganymede and Narvi. Why is Earth's moon just called Moon? So we want to know, if you had to give our moon a new name, what would it be?
Noemi, what would you name our moon? I know you read a lot, and a lot of times names come from mythology or literature. So is there a favorite character from a book you'd want to name the moon after, or a land from a book or something?
NOEMI: Oh, there is this character from this one book that I read called Voya. I feel like that might be a cool name.
MOLLY BLOOM: That would be a cool name. What is Voya like that makes you think "moon" when it comes to her name?
NOEMI: I don't know. She's just a really cool character, and I love her name so much, and I feel like it would just be a really pretty name for a moon.
MOLLY BLOOM: It is a pretty name for a moon. I totally agree.
Well, listeners, we want to hear from you, too. What do you think Earth's moon should be named? Record your moon name, tell us why you think it's cool, and send it to us at brainson.org/contact. While you're there, send us your mystery sounds, drawings, and questions.
NOEMI: Like this one.
SPEAKER: My question is, is a whale shark bigger than a whale?
MOLLY BLOOM: You can find answers to questions like these on the Moment of Um podcast. Again, that's brainson.org.
NOEMI: So keep listening.
SPEAKER: Brains On! Universe is a family of podcasts for kids and their adults. Since you're a fan of Brains On!, we know you'll love the other shows in our universe. Come on, let's explore.
[SPACECRAFT WHOOSHES BY]
SPEAKER: Entering Brains On! Universe--
[SCI-FI FLOURISH]
--to find my favorite podcasts.
[BEEP]
Brains On!, Smash Boom Best, Forever Ago.
[RADIO INTERFERENCE]
[GASPS] Picking up signal. Smash Boom Best, the smart, funny debate show.
[BEEPS, BOOPS]
SPEAKER: Squeak, squeak, squeak, squeak, squeak.
SPEAKER: Skitter, skitter, skitter. Tail, tails, tail turn. Tail, tail. Skitter, skitter, skitter, skitter. Tail turn.
SPEAKER: Is that a rat noise I hear?
[CHIME]
SPEAKER: That is a rat noise!
[LAUGHTER]
SPEAKER: You know, classic rat noise.
SPEAKER: Tail, tail, tail.
SPEAKER: Tail turn, tail turn.
SPEAKER: Turn, turn, turn, skip.
[BEEP]
SPEAKER: Zorp!
[TYPING]
Where did the signal go?
[MELODIC BEEPING]
Must find Smash Boom Best now!
[SPACECRAFT BLASTS OFF]
SPEAKER: Listen to Smash Boom Best wherever you get your podcasts.
SPEAKERS: Ba, ba, ba, ba, ba, ba, ba, ba, ba, ba, Brains On!
MOLLY BLOOM: You are listening to Brains On! I'm Molly.
NOEMI: And I'm Noemi. Today, we're talking about seahorses, and we're on our way to the beach.
MOLLY BLOOM: We just heard how seahorses have long snouts that they use to suck up prey like a straw, and curly tails for grabbing on to seaweed and coral.
NOEMI: They're pretty slow swimmers, but they're really, really good at hiding, thanks to their camouflage.
[ELEVATOR BELL RINGS]
[DOORS OPEN]
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh, hello, elevator. Could you take us to the beach? We're going to go hang out with some seahorses.
SPEAKER: Hello, Molly. Hello, Noemi. [SIGHS] Yes, I will take you there. But will you please tell Ruby and Sanden to wipe off their flip-flops before they come back to HQ? They keep tracking sand everywhere.
MOLLY BLOOM: Got it.
[ELEVATOR BELL RINGS]
[DOORS OPEN]
SPEAKER: Here we are, the beach. Watch your step.
MOLLY BLOOM: Thanks, elevator. Oh, check it out. The Brains On! crew is playing beach volleyball.
RUBY GUTHRIE: Watch this serve. Oh, yeah, nailed it.
SANDEN TOTTEN: Woo! Ha! Nice one, Ruby. All right, Penelope Poodle, you're up.
MOLLY BLOOM: OK, let's find those seahorses. Seahorses like shallow water, so we can just wade in over here. Hmm, do you see any? I met one yesterday, but now I don't see him.
NOEMI: Hmm, not yet. Oh, wait, there's one. Hang on. That's a piece of driftwood.
MOLLY BLOOM: Hmm, yeah. Oh, oh, I think I see one! Ah, no, that's just seaweed.
Ahem.
NOEMI: Did you hear something?
Ahem!
MOLLY BLOOM: It sounded like an ant with a head cold.
NOEMI: Or the world's tiniest radio.
SPEAKER: It's me. Hello? Hello? Is this thing on? Just kidding. I don't have a microphone-- only my sonorous, powerful voice. [LAUGHS]
NOEMI: A seahorse. You are really good at hiding. I bet you're great at hide and seek.
SPEAKER: Believe me, you definitely don't want to try that. The last human who played hide and seek with me ended up looking for years.
MOLLY BLOOM: Nice to see you again. We stopped by because we wanted to talk about how seahorses have babies.
SPEAKER: Oh, everyone's always asking us seahorses about this. Don't you want to hear about my encyclopedic knowledge of 1980s pro wrestlers, or how I just learned how to make donuts? The secret ingredient is brine shrimp.
NOEMI: That sounds delicious? But first, can we hear about the seahorse babies?
SPEAKER: OK, OK, hold your seahorses. You're in luck, because not only am I an expert in shrimp donuts. I'm also an expert in baby seahorses. Here's the thing. We seahorses do things a little differently than most other animals. That's because the males are the ones who carry the babies around while they're growing.
MOLLY BLOOM: In a little pouch, right, like a kangaroo?
SPEAKER: Exactly, except with kangaroos, it's the females who carry the baby. See this pouch on my belly? There are dozens of baby seahorses in there right this very moment.
NOEMI: Whoa, congratulations.
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh my gosh, that's so exciting.
SPEAKER: Thank you, thank you. It's very exciting. But first, let me back up and explain how this happens. [MUSIC PLAYING]
First, a male seahorse, like moi, and a female do a special dance for each other.
MOLLY BLOOM: Like ballroom dancing?
NOEMI: Or tap dancing?
SPEAKER: No, no, no, no. Not like the wild "jumping around you" humans do. Like I was saying--
[MUSIC PLAYING]
--seahorse dancing looks like trees swaying in the wind. Very elegant. Sometimes, the two seahorses even intertwine their tails like they're holding hands.
NOEMI: Aw, cute.
SPEAKER: After they're done dancing, the female seahorse puts her eggs inside the male's pouch, where the male fertilizes them. Eventually, those eggs will hatch into baby seahorses.
[POPPING]
SPEAKER: But even after they hatch, they stay safely tucked inside the male's pouch so they can keep growing for a bit.
MOLLY BLOOM: Ooh, so cozy.
SPEAKER: And not only do we provide a cozy place to grow. Our bodies make special chemicals to feed the babies, and we make sure the amount of salt water in our pouches is just right. Our female mate comes and checks on us every day, and our bellies get bigger and bigger.
[STRETCHING]
Then, after a couple of weeks, the baby seahorses pop out of the pouch. They're called a fry.
NOEMI: So cool. Do other animals have babies like this?
SPEAKER: Just us seahorses and our relatives, pipefish and sea dragons. We're the only animals where the males incubate and carry the babies in their bodies. And get this. Some seahorses can have as many as 2,000 babies at a time.
MOLLY BLOOM: That's so many babies.
SPEAKER: Sure is. Good thing we don't have to change diapers. Can you imagine?
[ALARM RINGING]
Speaking of which, it looks like it's time for these seahorse kiddos to greet the world. All right, little buddies, come on out.
[POPPING]
SPEAKER: Hi, Dad.
SPEAKER: Hey, Dad.
SPEAKER: What's up, Dad?
SPEAKER: Daddy!
SPEAKER: Dad!
SPEAKER: Hey, Pops!
[POPPING CONTINUES]
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh my gosh, they're little, miniature versions of you. So tiny!
SPEAKER: They do have my stunning jawline, don't they?
NOEMI: Where are they going now? They're all floating away.
SPEAKER: That's just how it happens. All the seahorse babies float away on ocean currents to start their lives. Good luck out there, kids! I'm proud of you.
SPEAKER: Bye, Dad.
SPEAKER: See you later, Pops.
SPEAKER: Love you, Dad.
SPEAKER: Bye, Dad.
NOEMI: Whoa, that was pretty incredible.
MOLLY BLOOM: It really was.
SPEAKER: Those three seconds of quality time before they float away makes it all worth it, you know?
[ALARM RINGING]
Now time for what you've really been waiting for.
NOEMI: More baby seahorses?
SPEAKER: What? No. A fresh batch of shrimp donuts. I just pulled them out of the oven.
[MOLLY AND NOEMI GROAN]
SPEAKER: OK, so the first thing you got to do when you're making these is collect a lot of brine shrimp with your mouth. Like, we're talking hundreds of brine shrimp.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
MOLLY BLOOM: Seahorses are truly unique and wonderful sea creatures.
NOEMI: They have eyes that move in all directions, like chameleons; special body plates like armor; and a grabby tail, like a monkey.
MOLLY BLOOM: Seahorses also are really good at camouflaging themselves.
NOEMI: Male seahorses are the ones who carry and protect the babies as they grow inside a special pouch.
MOLLY BLOOM: And they're a part of the only group of animals in the world where the males are the ones that do this.
That's it for this episode of Brains On!
NOEMI: This episode was written by--
SHAHLA FARZAN: Shahla Farzan.
NOEMI: And edited by--
SANDEN TOTTEN: Sanden Totten.
NOEMI: Fact-checking by--
JESS MILLER: Jess Miller.
MOLLY BLOOM: We had engineering help from Jess Berg, with sound design by--
RACHEL BREES: Rachel Brees.
MOLLY BLOOM: Original theme music by--
MARC SANCHEZ: Marc Sanchez.
NOEMI: We had production help from the Brains On! Universe team.
MOLLY BLOOM: Molly Bloom.
ROSE DUPONT: Rose DuPont.
ANNA GOLDFIELD: Anna Goldfield.
NICO WISLER: Nico Gonzalez Wisler.
RUBY GUTHRIE: Ruby Guthrie.
LAURA HUMBERT: Lauren Humbert.
JOSHUA RAY: Joshua Ray.
MARC SANCHEZ: Marc Sanchez.
CHARLOTTE TRAVER: Charlotte Traver.
ANNA WEGGEL: Anna Weggel.
NOEMI: And--
ARON WOLDESLASSIE: Aron Woldeslassie.
MOLLY BLOOM: Beth Pearlman is our executive producer, and the executives in charge of APM Studios are Chandra Kavati and Joanne Griffith. Special thanks to Hannah Meacock Ross, Jesse Ross, and Heather Koldewey.
NOEMI: Brains On! is a nonprofit public radio program.
MOLLY BLOOM: There are lots of ways to support the show. Subscribe to Brains On! Universe on YouTube, where you can watch animated versions of some of your favorite episodes, or head to brainson.org.
NOEMI: While you're there, you can send us mystery sounds, drawings, and questions.
MOLLY BLOOM: OK, Noemi, speaking of mystery sounds, ready to listen to that again?
NOEMI: Yeah, let's do it.
MOLLY BLOOM: Awesome.
[RATTLING, FLUTTERING]
What do you think?
NOEMI: I still think it's the keyboard.
MOLLY BLOOM: OK, I think that's a great guess. Do you want to hear the answer?
NOEMI: Yeah.
MOLLY BLOOM: Here it is.
ZELLA: Hello, my name is Zella. I'm from Tulsa, Oklahoma, and my mystery sound was the sound of fingers typing on a keyboard.
MOLLY BLOOM: Aw, yeah.
NOEMI: Yeah!
MOLLY BLOOM: That's right. Amazing ears. I can tell you've been a podcast fan for a long time, because your ears are tuned in.
NOEMI: Thank you. Thank you.
MOLLY BLOOM: So good.
[TYPING]
Now it's time for the Brains Honor Roll. These are the incredible kids who keep the show going with their questions, ideas, mystery sounds, drawings, and high fives.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
[LISTING HONOR ROLL]
(SINGING) Brains Honor Roll
High five
MOLLY BLOOM: We'll be back next week with an episode all about auroras, nature's amazing light show in the sky.
NOEMI: Thanks for listening!
SPEAKER: Brains On! is supported in part by a grant from the National Science Foundation.
MOLLY BLOOM: Hey, Ruby. Want to play a game?
RUBY GUTHRIE: They don't call me Ruby "loves a good game" Guthrie for nothing, Molly.
MOLLY BLOOM: I've never heard anyone call you that.
RUBY GUTHRIE: It's true. See, it's even printed on my driver's license and my birth certificate.
MOLLY BLOOM: Huh, guess they really do call you that. Well, this is perfect because I thought we could play a game of 20 questions. I'll think of an animal, and you get to ask me 20 questions to figure out which animal it is.
RUBY GUTHRIE: Let's do it. OK, does the animal you're thinking of have a tail?
MOLLY BLOOM: Yes. It has a long, curly tail for grabbing on to stuff.
RUBY GUTHRIE: Ooh, ooh. OK, I know this. It's a monkey.
MOLLY BLOOM: Good guess, but no.
RUBY GUTHRIE: Ugh, OK. Does it have a pouch?
MOLLY BLOOM: It does have a pouch.
RUBY GUTHRIE: OK, it has a long tail and a pouch. Oh, it's got to be a kangaroo, right?
MOLLY BLOOM: It's not a kangaroo.
RUBY GUTHRIE: Jeez. A tail? A pouch? My next question was going to be if it lives in the ocean, but that seems unlikely.
MOLLY BLOOM: Uh, yes, it does live in the ocean, in shallow habitats along the coast, like coral reefs.
RUBY GUTHRIE: Wait for real? Is it some kind of fish?
MOLLY BLOOM: Yes, it is a fish.
RUBY GUTHRIE: Hold up. Molly, are you pulling my leg? What kind of fish has a pouch and a curly tail?
MOLLY BLOOM: I'll give you a hint.
[NEIGHS]
RUBY GUTHRIE: Oh, OK, a sea cowboy? Oh, a sea pony? No, sea monkey.
MOLLY BLOOM: No.
[NEIGHS]
RUBY GUTHRIE: Horses. Horses. Horses. Horses in the ocean. Oh, I got it. It's a seahorse!
MOLLY BLOOM: Yes, you got it, a seahorse.
RUBY GUTHRIE: Wait, a seahorse has a tail that can grab on to stuff, and a pouch?
MOLLY BLOOM: Yes, and that's not all. They also have--
RUBY GUTHRIE: Ah! Ah, ah! Spoiler alert, Molly. Don't tell me. I'm just about to listen to this episode of Brains On! about seahorses, right now.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
MOLLY BLOOM: You're listening to Brains On! from APM Studios. I'm Molly Bloom, and my cohost today is Noemi, from Minneapolis, Minnesota. Hi, Noemi.
NOEMI: Hey, Molly.
MOLLY BLOOM: Today we're talking about one of the most incredible creatures in the ocean, seahorses. We've gotten a lot of questions about seahorses over the years, like this one.
WESTON: Hello, my name is Weston.
SAWYER: Hi, my name is Sawyer. We're from Salt Lake City, Utah, and we want to know, how do seahorses swim?
MOLLY BLOOM: We're going to answer that question and more today. But first, Noemi, you've been interested in seahorses for a while, right?
NOEMI: Yes.
MOLLY BLOOM: Well, we have video proof of that because your mom shared a video of you talking about seahorses when you were three years old, and you already knew a lot about them.
[AUDIO PLAYBACK]
- Emi.
- What?
- Can you tell me some stuff about seahorses?
- They swim, and they don't use your dorsal fin.
- They don't use a dorsal fin? What kind of tails do they have?
- Prehensile tails.
[END PLAYBACK]
MOLLY BLOOM: That is so stinking cute. Oh my gosh. I don't think there's a lot of three-year-olds who know the word "prehensile."
NOEMI: Yeah.
MOLLY BLOOM: [LAUGHS]
NOEMI: I was definitely so into seahorses and animals when I was younger.
MOLLY BLOOM: So do you remember how you found out all those facts about seahorses?
NOEMI: No idea.
MOLLY BLOOM: [LAUGHS] And so, back then, do you remember being really into other animals, too? What were some of your other faves?
NOEMI: I remember that I really liked jaguars, and I really liked ring-tailed lemurs.
MOLLY BLOOM: So are you still interested in animals today?
NOEMI: I mean, I definitely don't research them as much as I did when I was younger, but yeah, I still love animals.
MOLLY BLOOM: How old are you now?
NOEMI: Now I'm 11.
MOLLY BLOOM: 11. OK, so that was eight long years ago. What's your favorite animal these days?
NOEMI: I can't choose a favorite.
MOLLY BLOOM: Too many wonderful animals.
NOEMI: Yeah.
MOLLY BLOOM: So, OK, let's have a top three. Could you do that?
NOEMI: OK.
MOLLY BLOOM: [LAUGHS]
NOEMI: I guess I like hawks and cats and, I guess, any species of bird.
MOLLY BLOOM: So cool. Have you ever seen a seahorse in real life?
NOEMI: No, I don't think so, at least not that I can remember.
MOLLY BLOOM: So, back then, you were into the prehensile tails, the dorsal fins, the having babies. Do you have any other things about seahorses that you love?
NOEMI: I love their camouflage. I love that they're like octopuses in that way, or they can blend in with their surroundings.
MOLLY BLOOM: So do you feel like you remember everything you knew about seahorses back then, or have you forgotten some of it?
NOEMI: I've definitely forgotten most of it.
MOLLY BLOOM: Excellent, so we're going to learn a lot today together. Seahorses are strange and wonderful animals.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
Technically, they're a type of fish, but they look really different from most other fishes. Instead of scales, seahorse bodies are covered in hard, bony plates, like armor.
NOEMI: They have long snouts and eyes that move independently in all directions, like a chameleon.
[BLINKING]
MOLLY BLOOM: Since their eyes can move in different directions, that means one eye can be looking forward while the other is looking behind them at the same time.
NOEMI: Seahorses also have a special, curly tail that they use to hold on to kelp, seagrass, and coral, like how a monkey or possum's tail holds on to a branch.
[BOING]
MOLLY BLOOM: Like Noemi said earlier, those are called prehensile tails, and seahorses are some of the only animals in the ocean that have them.
NOEMI: There are all different kinds of seahorses that live in oceans across the world.
MOLLY BLOOM: You can find them along the rocky shores of Ireland--
[DING]
--in Australia's Great Barrier Reef--
[DING]
--or even in kelp forests on the California coast.
[DING]
NOEMI: Some are as small as a grain of rice, while others are more than a foot long.
MOLLY BLOOM: Seahorses come in all different colors, too, from fiery red to bright yellow.
NOEMI: Some have long, spiky spines or bony knobs sticking off their bodies.
MOLLY BLOOM: Others are covered in beautiful patterns, like black-and-white stripes and tiny dots.
NOEMI: So cool. And get this-- they can even change colors. Their skin can switch colors to help them blend in with their surroundings. That's called camouflage.
MOLLY BLOOM: Sometimes they're so good at hiding that it's really hard to find them in the wild. We talked with Heather Koldewey about that. She's a marine biologist who cofounded a group called Project Seahorse, which works to protect seahorses in the wild.
NOEMI: Heather still remembers the first time she saw a wild seahorse. She was snorkeling at night in the Philippines.
[AUDIO PLAYBACK]
- That first moment of seeing one in the wild was quite extraordinary, just because I appreciated how very, very difficult it was. You paddle out over the reef. You drop into the water, which is sort of a mix of magical and spooky because it's all very sort of dark and mysterious. But you get these flashes of plankton glowing like sparkles, and it's like being surrounded by tinsel as you swim. And then, going through the water, you just have a flashlight under the water, and what you actually first see is their eyes' moving.
[END PLAYBACK]
MOLLY BLOOM: Seahorses have to be really good at hiding because lots of other creatures want to eat them, and they're not great at swimming away.
NOEMI: A seahorse holds its body straight up, with its head pointing toward the surface of the water and its tail facing toward the sea floor.
MOLLY BLOOM: When they swim in this upright position, it's pretty awkward. It would be like if you tried to swim while standing upright.
NOEMI: Much slower than when you lay on your stomach and swim with your hands in front of you and your feet behind you.
MOLLY BLOOM: Seahorses have one fin on their back that moves them forward, like a propeller, and smaller fins on their head that help them steer.
NOEMI: The fins beat up to 70 times per second, about as fast as a hummingbird's wings.
MOLLY BLOOM: But even so, their awkward swimming style makes them pretty slow. So if a predator comes along, seahorses probably won't be able to outswim it. Instead, they hide or blend in with their surroundings.
NOEMI: And being camouflaged has another big advantage. It helps seahorses catch their food.
MOLLY BLOOM: You might not think of seahorses as expert hunters, but picture this.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
A seahorse is hiding in a patch of seaweed, holding on to the plant with its grippy little tail, and it's waiting.
NOEMI: All different kinds of creatures pass by-- fish, sea turtles, sharks. The seahorse waits and watches.
MOLLY BLOOM: Suddenly, a tiny shrimp floats by in the water right next to the seahorse, and--
[SLURPING]
--it just sucks it in.
NOEMI: Heather says a seahorse's mouth has a special design to help it gulp food down really fast.
[AUDIO PLAYBACK]
- Basically, the mouth has become fused into a straw with a flap on the end. So, as the little shrimp swims by, the flap opens, and the seahorse sucks really hard. Now, if you think of drinking a bubble tea or something like that, where it's got a lump in it and you want to suck it really hard, then, basically, that's what that straw is doing. It's sucking in that shrimp as it swims by.
[END PLAYBACK]
NOEMI: So seahorses are basically sucking up tiny sea creatures just like they're sipping shrimp bubble tea.
[SLURPING]
MOLLY BLOOM: Another cool thing about seahorses is that they can make sounds.
[AUDIO PLAYBACK]
- There's some really curious things, like seahorses make noises. They click, and they grunt, and we don't really understand much about how seahorses and why seahorses make noises.
[END PLAYBACK]
MOLLY BLOOM: With their color-changing camouflage, fluttering fin propellers, and super-fast-sucking straw mouths, seahorses are some of the coolest animals in the ocean. Most of the time, things are pretty chill for our horsey pals.
NOEMI: Yeah, they just grab on to some seaweed and slurp up tiny shrimp.
MOLLY BLOOM: But lately, seahorses have been under threat-- in part, because people like to catch them and collect them. They sometimes get stuck in fishing nets meant for other animals, and their habitats are being destroyed, like coral reefs and kelp forests.
NOEMI: That's why Heather and her group, Project Seahorse, are trying to protect these little fishy friends.
MOLLY BLOOM: You know, Noemi, there's one more amazing thing about seahorses we haven't mentioned yet.
NOEMI: How they have their babies!
MOLLY BLOOM: Exactly. And I know just the seahorse to talk about that. How about we head over to the beach and see if we can find him?
NOEMI: I'm always up for a beach trip.
MOLLY BLOOM: Before we go searching for seahorses, let's take a little break, because it's time for the--
[MYSTERIOUS MUSIC]
SPEAKER: (WHISPERING) Mystery sound.
MOLLY BLOOM: Are you ready, Noemi?
NOEMI: Yes.
MOLLY BLOOM: Wonderful. Here it is.
[RATTLING, FLUTTERING]
Hmm, what do you think?
NOEMI: I think it could be someone typing or fluttering pages of a book or something.
MOLLY BLOOM: Hmm, typing or fluttering pages. Do you want to hear it again?
NOEMI: Yeah.
MOLLY BLOOM: OK, let's hear it.
[RATTLING, FLUTTERING]
OK, what do you think now?
NOEMI: OK, I still think it might be those two, but it could also be someone rattling something and something bumping around inside, maybe.
MOLLY BLOOM: OK, what do you think the thing rattling could possibly be?
NOEMI: I don't know.
MOLLY BLOOM: That's why it's a mystery sound-- because it's a mystery. Well, we'll hear it again, get another chance to guess, and hear the answer at the end of the show.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
We're working with our friends at Radiolab on an episode about naming objects in space, and it got us wondering about Earth's moon. Other planets in our solar system have moons with awesome names like Ganymede and Narvi. Why is Earth's moon just called Moon? So we want to know, if you had to give our moon a new name, what would it be?
Noemi, what would you name our moon? I know you read a lot, and a lot of times names come from mythology or literature. So is there a favorite character from a book you'd want to name the moon after, or a land from a book or something?
NOEMI: Oh, there is this character from this one book that I read called Voya. I feel like that might be a cool name.
MOLLY BLOOM: That would be a cool name. What is Voya like that makes you think "moon" when it comes to her name?
NOEMI: I don't know. She's just a really cool character, and I love her name so much, and I feel like it would just be a really pretty name for a moon.
MOLLY BLOOM: It is a pretty name for a moon. I totally agree.
Well, listeners, we want to hear from you, too. What do you think Earth's moon should be named? Record your moon name, tell us why you think it's cool, and send it to us at brainson.org/contact. While you're there, send us your mystery sounds, drawings, and questions.
NOEMI: Like this one.
SPEAKER: My question is, is a whale shark bigger than a whale?
MOLLY BLOOM: You can find answers to questions like these on the Moment of Um podcast. Again, that's brainson.org.
NOEMI: So keep listening.
SPEAKER: Brains On! Universe is a family of podcasts for kids and their adults. Since you're a fan of Brains On!, we know you'll love the other shows in our universe. Come on, let's explore.
[SPACECRAFT WHOOSHES BY]
SPEAKER: Entering Brains On! Universe--
[SCI-FI FLOURISH]
--to find my favorite podcasts.
[BEEP]
Brains On!, Smash Boom Best, Forever Ago.
[RADIO INTERFERENCE]
[GASPS] Picking up signal. Smash Boom Best, the smart, funny debate show.
[BEEPS, BOOPS]
SPEAKER: Squeak, squeak, squeak, squeak, squeak.
SPEAKER: Skitter, skitter, skitter. Tail, tails, tail turn. Tail, tail. Skitter, skitter, skitter, skitter. Tail turn.
SPEAKER: Is that a rat noise I hear?
[CHIME]
SPEAKER: That is a rat noise!
[LAUGHTER]
SPEAKER: You know, classic rat noise.
SPEAKER: Tail, tail, tail.
SPEAKER: Tail turn, tail turn.
SPEAKER: Turn, turn, turn, skip.
[BEEP]
SPEAKER: Zorp!
[TYPING]
Where did the signal go?
[MELODIC BEEPING]
Must find Smash Boom Best now!
[SPACECRAFT BLASTS OFF]
SPEAKER: Listen to Smash Boom Best wherever you get your podcasts.
SPEAKERS: Ba, ba, ba, ba, ba, ba, ba, ba, ba, ba, Brains On!
MOLLY BLOOM: You are listening to Brains On! I'm Molly.
NOEMI: And I'm Noemi. Today, we're talking about seahorses, and we're on our way to the beach.
MOLLY BLOOM: We just heard how seahorses have long snouts that they use to suck up prey like a straw, and curly tails for grabbing on to seaweed and coral.
NOEMI: They're pretty slow swimmers, but they're really, really good at hiding, thanks to their camouflage.
[ELEVATOR BELL RINGS]
[DOORS OPEN]
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh, hello, elevator. Could you take us to the beach? We're going to go hang out with some seahorses.
SPEAKER: Hello, Molly. Hello, Noemi. [SIGHS] Yes, I will take you there. But will you please tell Ruby and Sanden to wipe off their flip-flops before they come back to HQ? They keep tracking sand everywhere.
MOLLY BLOOM: Got it.
[ELEVATOR BELL RINGS]
[DOORS OPEN]
SPEAKER: Here we are, the beach. Watch your step.
MOLLY BLOOM: Thanks, elevator. Oh, check it out. The Brains On! crew is playing beach volleyball.
RUBY GUTHRIE: Watch this serve. Oh, yeah, nailed it.
SANDEN TOTTEN: Woo! Ha! Nice one, Ruby. All right, Penelope Poodle, you're up.
MOLLY BLOOM: OK, let's find those seahorses. Seahorses like shallow water, so we can just wade in over here. Hmm, do you see any? I met one yesterday, but now I don't see him.
NOEMI: Hmm, not yet. Oh, wait, there's one. Hang on. That's a piece of driftwood.
MOLLY BLOOM: Hmm, yeah. Oh, oh, I think I see one! Ah, no, that's just seaweed.
Ahem.
NOEMI: Did you hear something?
Ahem!
MOLLY BLOOM: It sounded like an ant with a head cold.
NOEMI: Or the world's tiniest radio.
SPEAKER: It's me. Hello? Hello? Is this thing on? Just kidding. I don't have a microphone-- only my sonorous, powerful voice. [LAUGHS]
NOEMI: A seahorse. You are really good at hiding. I bet you're great at hide and seek.
SPEAKER: Believe me, you definitely don't want to try that. The last human who played hide and seek with me ended up looking for years.
MOLLY BLOOM: Nice to see you again. We stopped by because we wanted to talk about how seahorses have babies.
SPEAKER: Oh, everyone's always asking us seahorses about this. Don't you want to hear about my encyclopedic knowledge of 1980s pro wrestlers, or how I just learned how to make donuts? The secret ingredient is brine shrimp.
NOEMI: That sounds delicious? But first, can we hear about the seahorse babies?
SPEAKER: OK, OK, hold your seahorses. You're in luck, because not only am I an expert in shrimp donuts. I'm also an expert in baby seahorses. Here's the thing. We seahorses do things a little differently than most other animals. That's because the males are the ones who carry the babies around while they're growing.
MOLLY BLOOM: In a little pouch, right, like a kangaroo?
SPEAKER: Exactly, except with kangaroos, it's the females who carry the baby. See this pouch on my belly? There are dozens of baby seahorses in there right this very moment.
NOEMI: Whoa, congratulations.
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh my gosh, that's so exciting.
SPEAKER: Thank you, thank you. It's very exciting. But first, let me back up and explain how this happens. [MUSIC PLAYING]
First, a male seahorse, like moi, and a female do a special dance for each other.
MOLLY BLOOM: Like ballroom dancing?
NOEMI: Or tap dancing?
SPEAKER: No, no, no, no. Not like the wild "jumping around you" humans do. Like I was saying--
[MUSIC PLAYING]
--seahorse dancing looks like trees swaying in the wind. Very elegant. Sometimes, the two seahorses even intertwine their tails like they're holding hands.
NOEMI: Aw, cute.
SPEAKER: After they're done dancing, the female seahorse puts her eggs inside the male's pouch, where the male fertilizes them. Eventually, those eggs will hatch into baby seahorses.
[POPPING]
SPEAKER: But even after they hatch, they stay safely tucked inside the male's pouch so they can keep growing for a bit.
MOLLY BLOOM: Ooh, so cozy.
SPEAKER: And not only do we provide a cozy place to grow. Our bodies make special chemicals to feed the babies, and we make sure the amount of salt water in our pouches is just right. Our female mate comes and checks on us every day, and our bellies get bigger and bigger.
[STRETCHING]
Then, after a couple of weeks, the baby seahorses pop out of the pouch. They're called a fry.
NOEMI: So cool. Do other animals have babies like this?
SPEAKER: Just us seahorses and our relatives, pipefish and sea dragons. We're the only animals where the males incubate and carry the babies in their bodies. And get this. Some seahorses can have as many as 2,000 babies at a time.
MOLLY BLOOM: That's so many babies.
SPEAKER: Sure is. Good thing we don't have to change diapers. Can you imagine?
[ALARM RINGING]
Speaking of which, it looks like it's time for these seahorse kiddos to greet the world. All right, little buddies, come on out.
[POPPING]
SPEAKER: Hi, Dad.
SPEAKER: Hey, Dad.
SPEAKER: What's up, Dad?
SPEAKER: Daddy!
SPEAKER: Dad!
SPEAKER: Hey, Pops!
[POPPING CONTINUES]
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh my gosh, they're little, miniature versions of you. So tiny!
SPEAKER: They do have my stunning jawline, don't they?
NOEMI: Where are they going now? They're all floating away.
SPEAKER: That's just how it happens. All the seahorse babies float away on ocean currents to start their lives. Good luck out there, kids! I'm proud of you.
SPEAKER: Bye, Dad.
SPEAKER: See you later, Pops.
SPEAKER: Love you, Dad.
SPEAKER: Bye, Dad.
NOEMI: Whoa, that was pretty incredible.
MOLLY BLOOM: It really was.
SPEAKER: Those three seconds of quality time before they float away makes it all worth it, you know?
[ALARM RINGING]
Now time for what you've really been waiting for.
NOEMI: More baby seahorses?
SPEAKER: What? No. A fresh batch of shrimp donuts. I just pulled them out of the oven.
[MOLLY AND NOEMI GROAN]
SPEAKER: OK, so the first thing you got to do when you're making these is collect a lot of brine shrimp with your mouth. Like, we're talking hundreds of brine shrimp.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
MOLLY BLOOM: Seahorses are truly unique and wonderful sea creatures.
NOEMI: They have eyes that move in all directions, like chameleons; special body plates like armor; and a grabby tail, like a monkey.
MOLLY BLOOM: Seahorses also are really good at camouflaging themselves.
NOEMI: Male seahorses are the ones who carry and protect the babies as they grow inside a special pouch.
MOLLY BLOOM: And they're a part of the only group of animals in the world where the males are the ones that do this.
That's it for this episode of Brains On!
NOEMI: This episode was written by--
SHAHLA FARZAN: Shahla Farzan.
NOEMI: And edited by--
SANDEN TOTTEN: Sanden Totten.
NOEMI: Fact-checking by--
JESS MILLER: Jess Miller.
MOLLY BLOOM: We had engineering help from Jess Berg, with sound design by--
RACHEL BREES: Rachel Brees.
MOLLY BLOOM: Original theme music by--
MARC SANCHEZ: Marc Sanchez.
NOEMI: We had production help from the Brains On! Universe team.
MOLLY BLOOM: Molly Bloom.
ROSE DUPONT: Rose DuPont.
ANNA GOLDFIELD: Anna Goldfield.
NICO WISLER: Nico Gonzalez Wisler.
RUBY GUTHRIE: Ruby Guthrie.
LAURA HUMBERT: Lauren Humbert.
JOSHUA RAY: Joshua Ray.
MARC SANCHEZ: Marc Sanchez.
CHARLOTTE TRAVER: Charlotte Traver.
ANNA WEGGEL: Anna Weggel.
NOEMI: And--
ARON WOLDESLASSIE: Aron Woldeslassie.
MOLLY BLOOM: Beth Pearlman is our executive producer, and the executives in charge of APM Studios are Chandra Kavati and Joanne Griffith. Special thanks to Hannah Meacock Ross, Jesse Ross, and Heather Koldewey.
NOEMI: Brains On! is a nonprofit public radio program.
MOLLY BLOOM: There are lots of ways to support the show. Subscribe to Brains On! Universe on YouTube, where you can watch animated versions of some of your favorite episodes, or head to brainson.org.
NOEMI: While you're there, you can send us mystery sounds, drawings, and questions.
MOLLY BLOOM: OK, Noemi, speaking of mystery sounds, ready to listen to that again?
NOEMI: Yeah, let's do it.
MOLLY BLOOM: Awesome.
[RATTLING, FLUTTERING]
What do you think?
NOEMI: I still think it's the keyboard.
MOLLY BLOOM: OK, I think that's a great guess. Do you want to hear the answer?
NOEMI: Yeah.
MOLLY BLOOM: Here it is.
ZELLA: Hello, my name is Zella. I'm from Tulsa, Oklahoma, and my mystery sound was the sound of fingers typing on a keyboard.
MOLLY BLOOM: Aw, yeah.
NOEMI: Yeah!
MOLLY BLOOM: That's right. Amazing ears. I can tell you've been a podcast fan for a long time, because your ears are tuned in.
NOEMI: Thank you. Thank you.
MOLLY BLOOM: So good.
[TYPING]
Now it's time for the Brains Honor Roll. These are the incredible kids who keep the show going with their questions, ideas, mystery sounds, drawings, and high fives.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
[LISTING HONOR ROLL]
(SINGING) Brains Honor Roll
High five
MOLLY BLOOM: We'll be back next week with an episode all about auroras, nature's amazing light show in the sky.
NOEMI: Thanks for listening!
Transcription services provided by 3Play Media.
