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fishing forecast

sargassum pipefish

Syngnathus pelagicus · Syngnathidae · forage fish

Thin, long fish that lives among the sargassum weed floating in the sea, and whose male carries the eggs under its tail.

Also called: agulha-do-mar, pez pipa oceánico, sargassum pipefish

Scientific illustration of Sargassum pipefish
maximum
21 cm
location

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period

Reading the weather across 3 global models and 31 simulations…

the species

everything about the sargassum pipefish

overview

who is the sargassum pipefish

Fish of the family Syngnathidae, a relative of the seahorses, with a long body and a long, thin snout, reaching 21.2 cm. It lives associated with sargassum weed floating in the sea. It is ovoviviparous: the male carries the eggs in a pouch under the tail, from which the young emerge. It occurs in the western Atlantic, from Maine, USA, to Argentina, including the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean. It has commercial fishing, but is not a target of recreational fishing and almost never turns up on the angler's line.

Essential profile. Identification, where it occurs and rules, with data from FishBase and the cited regulations. Season, time of day, technique and bait are added once we have a good source for the sargassum pipefish.

how to recognize it

identification

Very long, thin body, with a long, narrow snout. Like the other pipefish of the family Syngnathidae, it is covered by bony rings rather than ordinary scales. The male has a pouch under the tail where it carries the eggs. To recognize it, look for a thin, long fish among the sargassum weed floating in the sea.

distribution

where found

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In Latin America it occurs in the Caribbean, the Gulf of Mexico, Colombia and Argentina, in coastal and shelf waters.

Habitat: Sea, associated with the sargassum weed floating on the surface.

what the law says

rules for the sargassum pipefish

Summary of the regulations we found, with the source for each. Rules change; before keeping or transporting fish, check with the state environmental agency.

We found no species-specific rule beyond the region's general rules.

catch and release
catch and release Releasing the fish alive, quickly and with a wet hand. During a closed season it isn't always allowed: what the regulation says applies.

It poses no danger to the angler, and is almost never caught on rod and line.

calculator

how much it weighs without taking it out of the water

Length-weight relationship W = a·Lb (a = 0.00054, b = 3.2; FishBase (relação peso-comprimento bayesiana, estimativa da própria espécie)). It's an average: a fat or lean fish can vary by 10% to 20%.

estimated weight

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sources and references

Essential profile: size, length-weight, depth, countries and conservation come from FishBase and the cited regulations, and the texts were written from those sources. Season, time of day, sensitivities, technique and baits and lures are not included yet, because we did not find a good source for this species.

  1. scientific FishBase: Syngnathus pelagicus (ficha da espécie)Size, length-weight, depth, habitat, distribution, biology, and IUCN status. Page checked on Oct 13, 2026.
  2. scientific FishBase: nomes populares de Syngnathus pelagicusNames by country and language.