Australian populations of H. whitei are protected under the Australian Wildlife Protection Act.

Life history

Breeding season October to April; found in pairs in the wild; sexually monogamous in the wild; egg diameter averages 1.8 mm; gestation duration 21–22 days; length at birth averages 8.5 mm; brood size usually 100–250.

Conservation status

The entire genus Hippocampus is listed in Appendix II of CITES, effective May 20041. H. whitei is

listed as Data Deficient by IUCN13. Environment Australia lists the conservation status of H. whitei

as Data Deficient39; Australian populations were moved under the Australian Wildlife Protection Act

in 1998 and placed under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act in 2001