They go at it like rabbits every two weeks... You just have to be on your toes when it gets close to birth time (or move the male to another tank-I've not done that yet).
The kreisel is just one option for keeping them in motion early on. This batch is the first to all be at the top of the water column when I transfered them, so I felt like a kreisel might help keep them in motion and off the bottom. They seemed to drift to the bottom and twitch until they'd (break surface tension? and) float off again. I built the kreisel out of an old ASM G5 skimmer and some acrylic sheet, so if you have access to a bandsaw and large diameter tubing, it's not hard to make.
The adults are in a 65 gallon (also where the kreisel is hung when I have babies). The general rule for seahorse homes is to make them at least 3X the max height of the seahorse. H. erectus can get to 7-8", so a 21-24" deep tank is along the right idea. They like cooler water than reefs, generally, too. The southern erectus have a temp range of 72-77F. I let mine go a little higher, but the chiller comes on at 79 if it gets that high. They don't need much light or flow, but need to be feed often and well. That leads to water pollution. I have mine as part of my main system for now (may change this summer when it gets hot) and that seems to help water parameters. The captive bred seahorses are the only way to go for a beginner. Wild caught bring in disease and generally don't pick up eating frozen, etc.
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