Baby seahorse rescue signals new hope for Indian River Lagoon

Surprise seahorse: Local shrimper makes rare find!

A baby seahorse was found by a local shrimper on the Space Coast. Longtime fishermen say these delicate creatures haven't been see in the Indian River Lagoon for decades. This could be a sign the lagoon restoration is working. 

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. - A local shrimper on the Space Coast received an unexpected surprise in his trap recently: a tiny, squirming baby seahorse. 

While the creature was only a few inches tall, its presence was a massive sign of better water quality in the Indian River Lagoon, which has struggled for decades.

Space Coast seahorse sighting

The backstory:

William Pendley was out shrimping in the Banana River near Kelly Park when he pulled up his trap and found the delicate creature. For longtime fishermen, the sighting was a shock; these sensitive animals have been largely absent from these waters for years.

"I’ve never even heard of a seahorse being here in the river," Pendley said.

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Pendley knew the baby was rare and acted quickly to get him back into the wild. Before the release, he snapped a few photos and gave the little guy a nickname: "Squirmin' Herman."

"He was squirming his way through that trap when I found him. I thought it would be fitting," Pendley laughed. "That was my first baby seahorse rescue."

Hope for the lagoon

For experts who have spent their lives on the water, Herman’s appearance is more than just a cute encounter—it’s a biological milestone. Captain Blair Wiggins, a local fishing expert, says it has been at least 25 to 30 years since he regularly saw seahorses in the river.

"When I was a kid, we used to catch them a lot in our crab traps," Wiggins said. "For a seahorse to be surviving in the water, the restoration efforts are definitely working."

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Because seahorses are incredibly delicate and sensitive to water quality, their return suggests that the uphill battle to restore the Indian River Lagoon is finally gaining ground.

"A seahorse is a very delicate creature, so I feel like that’s a good sign that everything is getting healthier for sure," Pendley added.

Seagrass spike

The reappearance of seahorses comes when a "major spike" in seagrass growth was recently recorded. According to the St. Johns River Water Management District, new monitoring data shows a significant expansion in both seagrass coverage and density across the lagoon system.

The District's latest 2025 aerial mapping study revealed:

• A 72% increase in seagrass coverage since 2023.
• An expansion of more than 7,000 hectares—roughly equivalent to 13,000 football fields.

Pendley believes "Squirmin' Herman" ended up in his trap because the little seahorse was clinging to the increasing amount of grass in the area.