Romance Lessons From a Seahorse [Video]
By Jimmy Sliwa
Male seahorses may be the most romantic creature in all the earth.
How can I make such a bold claim?
Well, unlike most animals, male seahorses actually invest time courting their mate. Where most male creatures puff their chest or flaunt their colors to show their dominance; male seahorses choose another approach.
They choose to win over their mate by wooing them.
In other words, you won’t be seeing a seahorse ‘hit it and quit it’ anytime soon.
Somehow and somewhere in the depths of their pea-sized brains, male seahorses have romance figured out. They seem to understand that the female mystique is one to be held in high regard.
Let me explain.
Prior to breeding, male seahorses will court their desired female for days. This is unheard of in the animal kingdom!
Most males in the animal kingdom sniff at the wind to discover which female is in heat, but the male seahorse isn’t so brash.
During courtship, the male seahorse will change colors (dress nicely), swim tail in tail (hold hands), and dance with their woman over a period of days.
All this to try and persuade the female seahorse that they would be a great match.
As the courtship progresses, the young and in-love couple will participate in a courtship dance that can last up to 8 hours. This isn’t the bump and grind…. this is straight class dancing (think the Argentine Tango).
Nothing says I’m committed to this relationship like an intimate slow dance. Because that is what women want, a man this will be committed to them for the long haul.
Assuming all goes well, the two seahorses will mate for life.
And it doesn’t stop there! The male will actually carry the young through gestation.
It’s as if the male seahorse knows that being a good father is one of the most attractive qualities a man can produce!
Again, talk about commitment; being willing to care for your offspring while the lady seahorse has time to do whatever it is that lady seahorses do!
When feeling like an unromantic schmuck, the human male need not look further than into the depths of the estuaries in the shallow tropics of temperate saltwater.
It is here that you will find one of thee most romantic creatures.
