Seahorse: Hippocampus histrix This spiny seahorse posed graciously for me in the front door of her home labyrinth, a soft coral (Alcyonacea). I am guessing that she is female because I do not see the abdominal pouch where males keep a couple's young offspring. Spiny seahorses are considered vulnerable: populations are widespread but are in decline. They are threatened by habitat loss, as bycatch in shrimp fishing, and because of their use in traditional medicine. (Somehow sme