California aquarium breeds rare sea dragons

An aquarium in Southern California breeds a rare and unusual fish and provides a mesmerizing first look at its long, floating appearance.

San Diego’s Birch Aquarium, at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, has produced two weedy sea dragon hatchlings this week

The aquarium is one of just a few in the world to successfully breed the unusual fish, constructing an 18-foot long tank for breeding them.

The weedy sea dragon is a cousin to the sea horse and resembles gently-drifting sea weed in the water.

Sea dragon populations are native to Australia, but are threatened by pollution, warming oceans and the illegal pet and alternative medicine trades.

For now, the weedy sea dragons are being kept out of public view until they grow more.