Ornate Pipefish

Halicampus macrorhynchus

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Syngnathiformes
Family: Syngnathidae
Genus: Halicampus
Species: Halicampus macrorhynchus

The ornate pipefish (Halicampus macrorhynchus) is a well-camouflaged pipefish with a long snout and a body covered in skin flaps and filaments.

It grows to about 16 cm and lives on sand, rubble and algae, where it blends in with debris. It feeds on tiny crustaceans, and the male carries the eggs.

The ornate pipefish is found in the Indo-West Pacific, including the Philippines, where it is a muck-diving find on sandy and rubble slopes.