Question: How and why do seahorses get pregnant

Sam Tazzyman answered on 21 Jun 2011:

The male has a pouch on his body for storing eggs. The female has an “ovipositor”, which is like a tube that lays eggs. She puts the tube into his pouch and lays the eggs in there. He then fertilises the eggs and carries them around until they are ready to be born. So he really is pregnant!

As for why it happens this way round in seahorses, whereas in most other species the females are the ones that get pregnant, no one really knows for sure – but it’s a fascinating topic.