Mangrove Pipefish (Ichthyocampus carce)

Mangrove Pipefish (Ichthyocampus carce)

A large-sized Mangrove Pipefish compared to an usual-sized individual!

Family: Syngnathidae

Species Name: Ichthyocampus carce
Common Name(s): Mangrove Pipefish, Freshwater Pipefish, Indian Freshwater Pipefish

Presence in Singapore: Native
Habitat: Mangroves and estuaries, slow-moving to still water such as pools. Freshwater streams and rivers.
Conservation status: Vulnerable (Red Data Book 3)

One of the few estuarine Syngnathid (seahorses and pipefishes) that we can find in Singapore and the most readily seen too. It can be found in relative abundance during low tide, where it inhabits isolated pools and slow-moving creeks. Despite their numbers, their thin bodies and brown colouration makes them tough to spot. They can grow up to 15cm in length but are usually found at sizes half of that, adding on to the difficulty. 

For a fish with such a seemingly small mouth, they are voracious predators of small invertebrates and zooplankton, which they snake along the sediment or around mangrove roots to stalk.

Like all Syngnathids, the males raises the eggs. The male Mangrove Pipefish carries the eggs in a brood pouch found under the tail.

One out of several Mangrove Pipefish found in an isolated pool with many estuarine gobies.

References

• ​FishBase. Ichthyocampus carce (Hamilton, 1822) – Freshwater Pipefish. Retrieved from https://www.fishbase.se/summary/Ichthyocampus-carce.html.
• Lim, K.K.P. & Low, J.K.Y. 1998. A Guide to Common Marine Fishes of Singapore. Singapore Science Centre, 163 pp. ISBN 981-00-9904-5.
• Ong JXL & Tay JX (2024) Biodiversity Record: Fish fauna of a mangrove tide pool at Sungei Buloh. Nature in Singapore, 17: e2024056. DOI: 10.26107/NIS-2024-0056
• National Parks Board (NParks). Marine Fishes. Retrieved from https://www.nparks.gov.sg/nature/species-list/marine-fishes.