Poster Presentation 2024 Australian Marine Sciences Association Annual Meeting combined with NZMSS

Conservation stocking of the Endangered White’s Seahorse (Hippocampus whitei): successes and lessons learned (#716)

Mitchell D Brennan 1 2 , David Harasti 3 , David J Booth 1
  1. School of Life Sciences, University of Technology, Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
  2. Sydney Institute of Marine Science, Sydney, NSW, Australia
  3. New South Wales Department of Primary Industries - Fisheries, Port Stephens, NSW, Australia

Conservation translocations and reintroductions are increasingly being employed as conservation methods to recover threatened species populations, however, they are not always successful. Identifying the cause of failures and appropriate ways forward is essential in increasing future success. Since 2020, a conservation stocking program has been implemented to recover declining populations of the Endangered White’s Seahorse Hippocampus whitei, and has had varying degrees of success; success being determined by survival of captive-bred seahorses in the wild and evidence of breeding. We explore the lessons learned in the implementation of a conservation stocking program for H. whitei, highlighting the evidence of success and potential causes of failure, and identifying the future research steps necessary to improve the conservation outcomes.