Interactive Seahorse Map

Explore the distribution of the world’s seahorses together with their conservation status, habitats, pressures and conservation measures.

Species distributions: This interactive tool displays the global distribution of the 46 currently described seahorse species, presented as polygons extending 100 km from coastlines to improve visibility of areas where species are known or likely to occur. Ranges are more likely to extend less from the coast due to depth limitations.

Conservation status: Species profiles include information obtained from the IUCN Red List, such as their global conservation status (Current and Pending), population trend, maximum height, depth range, habitat and major pressures.

Habitats: Habitats commonly used by seahorses, including coral reefs, mangroves and seagrass are represented by habitat layers from UNEP-WCMC and Bunting et al. 2018.

Pressures: The global extent of seahorse pressures as based on Project Seahorse research. New pressure data will be added as new research becomes available, so be sure to check back regularly.

View interactive map

How to Use the Map:

  • Search by species (scientific or common name), Red List status (e.g., LC, Vulnerable), region (e.g., Asia, Europe), or ocean basin (e.g., Eastern Atlantic).
  • Toggle layer visibility using the eye icon next to each layer. Note that enabling many layers at once may obscure overlapping data.
  • Click a layer name or species range to open its information pop-up window
  • Click the species photo to access its page on the IUCN Red List

Click below for further information on all data layers.

Seahorse distribution: Distribution maps are based on updated Red List assessments conducted between 2023 and 2026. Some assessments may not yet appear on the official IUCN Red List website and marked as “In Progress” under pending assessments. Assessments marked as awaiting publication means that they will be published on the next round of the IUCN Red List publication event.

Updated distributions are available for 38 of 46 species; the remaining 8 species listed below are still being mapped.

  • Hippocampus camelopardalis

  • Hippocampus capensis

  • Hippocampus histrix

  • Hippocampus jayakari

  • Hippocampus jugumus

  • Hippocampus kuda

  • Hippocampus pusillus

  • Hippocampus tyro

The atlas will continue to be updated as new data becomes available.

Seahorse height: This is the most commonly reported measure of seahorse size, and is measured from the coronet (top of the head) to the tip of the tail in centimeters.

Habitats: The coral layer has been modified to improve visibility.

Pressures: Illegal traded dried seahorses – reveals export, transit, and import countries of illegal dried seahorses

Seahorse species layers:
IUCN Red List; Project Seahorse

Habitats layers:

Coral: UNEP-WCMC, WorldFish Centre, WRI, TNC (2021). Global distribution of coral reefs, compiled from multiple sources including the Millennium Coral Reef Mapping Project. Version 4.1, updated by UNEP-WCMC. Includes contributions from IMaRS-USF and IRD (2005), IMaRS-USF (2005) and Spalding et al. (2001). Cambridge (UK): UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre. Data DOI: https://doi.org/10.34892/t2wk-5t34

Seagrass: UNEP-WCMC, Short FT (2021). Global distribution of seagrasses (version 7.1). Seventh update to the data layer used in Green and Short (2003). Cambridge (UK): UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre. Data DOI: https://doi.org/10.34892/x6r3-d211

Mangroves: Bunting P., Rosenqvist A., Lucas R., Rebelo L-M., Hilarides L., Thomas N., Hardy A., Itoh T., Shimada M. and Finlayson C.M. (2018). The Global Mangrove Watch – a New 2010 Global Baseline of Mangrove Extent. Remote Sensing 10(10): 1669. https://doi.org/10.3390/rs1010669

Global illegal trade layer: Source: Foster, S. J., Ascione, S. J., Santaniello, F., & Phelps Bondaroff, T. N. (2025). Using online reports of seahorse seizures to track their illegal trade. Conservation Biology, e70047. https://doi.org/10.1111/cobi.70047

The map was created and developed by Elsa Camins Martinez and Ki Chung Cho

[Updated 2 June 2026]

[Updated 26 May 2026]