Indian Police Thwarts Smuggling of Dozens of Sea Horses Protected by Bicycles

Illustration of dry sea horses. (Wikimedia Commons/Jgremillot)

JAKARTA - Indian police have thwarted an attempt to smuggle 90 dried seahorses and arrested a man who took them.

Specimens of this protected species in India were seized in Devipatnam, southern state of Tamil Nadu.

The suspect, identified as Naganathan, 57, was arrested after Forestry Department officers found him carrying a bag on his bicycle on Tuesday.

According to the authorities, the man was detained under India's Wildlife Protection Act.

"It was revealed he was Naganathan from the North Street area, Devipatnam and he regularly smuggled seahorses. In addition, 90 seahorses and a two-wheeled vehicle were also seized," a Forestry Department official said, as reported by The National News 5 July

It is known, seahorses are threatened with extinction due to loss of habitat and overfishing. Thus, seahorses fall under the Indian Wildlife Protection Act as a protected marine species.

Hunting seahorses is illegal, with rules against their trade having been enforced for the past two decades. The penalty for those who violate it is three years in prison.

Nevertheless, seahorse capture and smuggling is rampant in this coastal state due to a thriving illegal industry. There is a growing demand for traditional Asian medicine, aquarium and as an aphrodisiac.

Meanwhile, ten of the 41 species of seahorses in the world are found in Indian waters, in mangroves, coral reefs and seagrasses.

It is known that around 13 million seahorses were caught off the coast of India in 2021. Most are trapped by non-selective fishing gear on the seafloor, according to Project Seahorse, a marine conservation organization.