Dried Seahorses can often be found for sale at herbal shops throughout the Bay Area, as medicinal ingredients for treating asthma or increasing virility; some even end up in home aquariums!

However, wild populations of marine organisms such as small fish are rapidly declining due to overharvesting for dry and live curios.

Legality

Though seahorses may not be commonly found in stores, they can still be found across the world and purchased online via numerous platforms like eBay, Etsy and Amazon – though these sites do not do enough to help stop trade of species that is legally protected and Sold for traditional Chinese medicine purposes.

According to a new study from the University of British Columbia, nations continue engaging in global seahorse trade that sidesteps regulations despite bans. Between 20 and 25 million dead dried seahorse cross international borders annually for use as medicinal ingredients primarily in China.

Seahorses are often consumed for their supposed aphrodisiac properties or healing capabilities such as treating asthma or skin infections, in a trade that is both unsustainable and illegal; harming both marine species as well as local communities who depend on them for income.

Safety

Few seahorses taken from their wild environments end up in home aquariums; most end up dried and sold in Asian folk medicines for everything from asthma to impotence. Millions of seahorses are killed each year to satisfy this demand for remedies that have yet to be proven effective – this demand leads to their slaughter for medicinal use which, while theoretically effective may actually prove toxic in practice.

Although listed as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, seahorse populations continue to decrease globally. Many species are illegally caught and sold to aquarium retailers for profit while many others perish from overfishing for Chinese medicine or habitat loss.

Etsy sellers may be unaware that selling wildlife is illegal or may violate CITES regulations, according to The Seahorse Trust. In order to legally sell seahorses legally, one must be able to prove they were collected sustainably – however inquiries conducted with Etsy sellers have revealed that many do not possess a permit from CITES nor know where or how their specimens came from.

Sustainability

On a global scale, millions of seahorses are taken from the ocean every year for use as Asian folk medicine, pet toys and curios. Their bony exoskeletons allow them to be dried into trinkets; furthermore they’re caught through destructive fishing methods like bottom trawling that also catch and kill other marine life.

Foster believes the only way to save seahorses is through drastically reducing demand, and that requires making significant investments to reduce trawling, close more areas to fishing and increase inspections for shipments; also it takes political will from nations that prohibit selling seahorses as exporting or smuggling them will need to cease immediately.

Ethics

Although seahorses make great additions to any terrarium, it is important to remember they are still wild creatures. Most seahorses sold in aquarium shops have been captive-bred or raised; others may even be collected from their natural environment and sold back into terrarium hobbyists by collectors.