Ovis hippocampus lanatus
Woolly Seadragon
Field Report Summary
Physical Description
The Woolly Seadragon possesses the elongated body and upright posture of a seahorse, but its exterior is covered in thick, matted wool reminiscent of a sheep's fleece. This wool is typically a muted grey or brown, providing camouflage against rocky seabeds. It has delicate, leaf-like appendages along its back and belly, similar to a leafy seadragon, but these are proportionally smaller and covered in short, dense wool. Its snout is short and blunt, and its eyes are small and black. The tail is prehensile, but also covered in a shorter, coarser wool. They have a series of branching, feathery gills that protrude slightly from the base of their neck, hidden among the wool. They lack scales.
Habitat
Icy fjords and kelp forests of subarctic regions.
Dietary Behavior
Filter feeds on plankton and small crustaceans.
Evolutionary Origin
A species of seadragon that integrated genes from a marine mammal ancestor, causing its fins to become covered in insulating wool-like filaments.
Behavioral Notes
The color of its 'wool' changes depending on the temperature of the water, providing camouflage.