---
title: "Northern Seahorse"
description: "Hippocampus erectus — Fish. The lined seahorse (Hippocampus erectus), northern seahorse or spotted seahorse, is a species of fish that belongs to the family Syngnathidae."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/animal/northern-seahorse
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Northern Seahorse

> Hippocampus erectus — Fish. The lined seahorse (Hippocampus erectus), northern seahorse or spotted seahorse, is a species of fish that belongs to the family Syngnathidae.

- Scientific name: *Hippocampus erectus*
- Category: `fish` (Fish)
- Habitats: `sea` (Sea & coast)
- iNaturalist observations: 1831
- Wikidata: [Q2578911](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q2578911)
- iNaturalist taxon: [54540](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/54540)

## Names

- en: Northern Seahorse
- de: Linienseepferdchen
- es: Caballito estriado de mar
- fr: Hippocampe rayé

## Countries with the most observations

US (1287), CA (33), MX (21), BM (8), BZ (8), PT (8), GP (5), TT (5), BS (3)

## Summary

The lined seahorse (Hippocampus erectus), northern seahorse or spotted seahorse, is a species of fish that belongs to the family Syngnathidae.  H. erectus is a diurnal species with an approximate length of 15 cm (5.9 inches) and lifespan of one to four years. The H. erectus species can be found in myriad colors, from greys and blacks to reds, greens, and oranges. The lined seahorse lives in the western Atlantic Ocean as far north as Cape Cod and as far south as the Caribbean, Mexico, and Venezuela. It swims in an erect position and uses its dorsal and pectoral fins for guidance while swimming.
Lined seahorses feed…

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lined_seahorse

## Photo

![Northern Seahorse](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/northern-seahorse/medium.jpg)

Photo: Daniel Estabrooks · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/117853617

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/northern-seahorse?lang=en` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).