(How Gene Changes and Loss Shape the Pygmy Sea Horse)
How Gene Changes and Loss Shape the Pygmy Sea Horse
Kylee French
BIOL-2110-001 - GENETICS
Professor Guy F. Barbato
October 13, 2025
The pygmy seahorse is a tiny and well-camouflaged creature. Varying in many colors, these small animals live in coral reefs in the Pacific Ocean; however, they don't live in your typical coral reefs. Pygmy seahorses live in venomous reefs. How? Their tails can safely grab onto the reefs through many gene adaptations. Scientists recently studied its DNA to understand how these traits evolved, revealing how both genetic changes and the loss of certain genes shaped this unique animal. They have so many different adaptations that they need to survive, and they have perfectly crafted their adaptations to live in their habitats. An article I read titled “How the Pygmy Sea horse Lost Its Snout” shares some more in-depth quotes on how this research occurred and what it could further mean.
One of the most fascinating findings from the study is how genetic changes shaped the pygmy sea horse’s unique traits. According to the article, “Some of the mutations that pygmy sea horses gained altered single genetic letters in their DNA. Those alterations, in turn, caused subtle changes in the shape of certain proteins, including ones that are active in the sea horse’s nervous system” (Zimmer, 2025). This is how they are able to hold onto venomous coral because they evolved to be immune. The article also explains that the knobs on their bodies, which help them blend into coral, evolved when “old genes learn new tricks” (Zimmer, 2025) through changes in genetic switches. Perhaps most strikingly, pygmy sea horses have lost hundreds of genes and thousands of gene-regulating sequences, showing that evolution sometimes works by losing as much as by gaining, resulting in the animal’s highly specialized biology.
Another remarkable aspect of the pygmy sea horse’s evolution is how losing genes contributed to its unique traits. The article explains that “the effect of these losses…was to halt the development of the pygmy sea horse’s head at an early stage,” resulting in its distinctive knob-like snout. Even though many immune-system genes were lost, the sea horses did not become more vulnerable to disease, likely because the corals they live on provide protective compounds. Interestingly, the loss of immune genes may have made male pregnancy possible, allowing fathers to carry embryos without their bodies rejecting them as foreign tissue (Allison, 2019).
In conclusion, the pygmy sea horse is a remarkable example of how evolution shapes life through both changes in genes and the loss of genes. Its adaptations, immunity to venom, and male pregnancy show how genetic changes can produce highly specialized traits. At the same time, losing certain genes opened new possibilities, allowing these extreme adaptations to exist. However, their dependence on coral also makes them vulnerable, especially as their habitats face threats from climate change. Studying their genetics helps us understand how unique traits evolve.
References
Allison. (2019, June 13). The Only Male Animals in the World That Get Pregnant and Give Birth. Padi. Retrieved October 13, 2025, from https://blog.padi.com/the-only-male-animals-in-the-world-that-get-pregnant-and-give-birth/
Smith, R. How Gene Changes and Loss Shape the Pygmy Sea Horse [Photograph].
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