The mysterious creature is a seahorse. Let's get to know each other better. Seahorse Seahorse name

Avid aquarists like to breed a wide variety of exotic fish and bright, unusual animals that attract with their non-standard, bizarre proportions and interesting, sometimes playful behavior. And none, and even can not be compared with the brightest inhabitants of sea waters - seahorses.

The seahorse is one of the most outlandish representatives of the aquarium world. Despite their bizarre forms, all seahorses are included in the subgroup of bony marine fish, the needle-shaped order.

It is interesting! There are only one males on the planet who themselves bear their future offspring - seahorses.

Taking a closer look, you yourself will notice the striking resemblance of these small bony fish with a chess piece. And how a seahorse moves interestingly in the water, bends all over and very proudly carries its superbly folded head!

Despite the apparent difficulty, keeping a seahorse is practically the same as keeping any other inhabitants of the aquarium world. But, before acquiring one or several individuals, many factors should be taken into account, without which the life of this bright and interesting "sea needle" may not be as long as we would like.

Seahorses: interesting facts

The existence of the seahorse was known for a thousand years before our era. In ancient Roman mythology, it is told that the god of water streams and the sea, Neptune, whenever he went to check his possessions, harnessed a “sea needle”, very similar to a horse, to the chariot. Therefore, for sure, Lord Neptune cannot be huge if he moved on small thirty-centimeter skates. But, seriously, it is very rare in nature today to find marine needle-shaped ones that would reach a length of 30 cm. Basically, “horses” barely reach twelve centimeters.

In our time, the existence of the fossilized remains of the ancestors of the seahorse is already known. In the course of a study at the genetic level, scientists have identified the similarity of a seahorse with a needle fish.

What are seahorses

Today, marine aquarists breed seahorses that range in length from 12 millimeters to twenty centimeters. However, most of all, aquarists prefer to care for hippocampus erectus, those. standard seahorses.

Seahorses were specially named so, since the head, chest, neck are completely similar to horse parts of the body. At the same time, they differ from fish in a different physique. The horse's head of these individuals is set in a completely different way than that of fish - in relation to the body, it is located at ninety degrees. What is even more interesting, these marine fish have eyes looking in different directions.

And these small, cute little sea creatures swim not horizontally, but vertically and have scales all over their body, strong armor - bone colorful, iridescent plates. The shell of these marine needle-shaped specimens is "steel" that it cannot be pierced.

I would also like to mention an interesting property of a twisted, long tail of a sea fish in the form of a spiral. If seahorses feel that a predator is nearby, they very quickly run away to shelter, algae, which they skillfully cling to with their spiral tail and manage to hide.

It is interesting! Feeling that danger is imminent, seahorse fish cling to corals or algae with their long tails and remain motionless for a long time, hanging upside down.

Despite such a cute appearance, seahorses are classified as predatory fish, as they feed on shrimp and marine crustaceans.

The seahorse has the ability to camouflage itself. They mimic like chameleons, taking on the color of the place where they stop. Basically, these marine fish like to hide where there are more saturated, bright colors in order to avoid encountering predators. And with the help of bright colors, the male attracts the attention of the female, which he really liked. To please the female, he can even “put on” her color.

Seahorses, despite their numbers, are considered rare fish, so their thirty subspecies are listed in the Red Book. The problem is that year after year, the world's oceans turn into a universal polluted, garbage "dump", because of which corals and algae die en masse, and these photosynthetic organisms are vital for seahorses.

And yet, the seahorse itself has long been a valuable animal. The Chinese fish these fish en masse, as they believe that they treat any disease. In many European countries, dead seahorses automatically become raw materials for the manufacture of various souvenirs.

Keeping seahorses at home

Sea bony horses are unusual, bright, funny and very beautiful creatures. Maybe, feeling their beauty and grandeur, they are very “naughty” when they fall into captivity. And to make these fish feel good, even experienced aquarists should try very hard. For them, a natural habitat must be created so that the animals feel there in the same way as in sea water. It is very important to monitor the temperature regime of aquariums. Seahorses will feel comfortable in cool water with a temperature of twenty-three to twenty-five degrees Celsius, but no more. In a hot period, be sure to install a split system above the aquarium, you can simply turn on the fan. From hot air, these little creatures can suffocate even in warm water.

Before placing purchased skates in an aquarium with ordinary water, check its quality: it should not contain phosphates or ammonia. The maximum concentration of nitrates in water is allowed at ten ppm. Also, don't forget to install your favorite seahorse algae and corals in the aquarium. Surface grottoes made of artificial material will also look beautiful.

So, you have taken care of the seahorse house. It will also be important for them to take care of nutrition, because these beautiful inhabitants of the sea love to eat meat and exotic meat often and a lot. On the day, the seahorse should eat at least four to five times, getting the meat of shrimp and crustaceans. To do this, you can buy frozen invertebrate molluscs and crustaceans. Seahorses love Mysis shrimp and will happily eat moths and even daphnia.

• All seahorses suffer from limited gas exchange due to poor performance of the gills. That is why the constant filtration of water and the supply of oxygen is a vital process for seahorses.
• Seahorses do not have stomachs, so they need a lot of food to keep themselves healthy and maintain their energy balance.
• Seahorses do not have scales, which is why they easily succumb to any infection, especially bacterial ones. An ecosystem moderator in an enclosed space should frequently inspect the seahorse's torso, which may be damaged.
• Seahorses have interesting mouths - proboscis, with the help of which these creatures suck in caught prey at such a speed that they can swallow a dozen spineless mollusks at a time.

seahorse breeding

Seahorses are skillful gentlemen! They begin their courtship with a courtship dance, which they demonstrate to the female. If everything worked out, the fish touch each other, wrap themselves around and look closely. This is how seahorses get to know each other. After numerous "hugs", the female begins to throw a large army of caviar into the male's purse with the help of her sexual nipple. Transparent fry of the seahorse are born after 30 days in an amount of from twenty to two hundred individuals. The fry are born - males!

It is interesting! In nature, there is a subspecies of males of an outstanding seahorse, capable of carrying over a thousand fry.

It is noteworthy that it is very difficult for a male seahorse to give offspring, after giving birth, after a day or even two, he rests for a long time at the bottom of the reservoir. And only the male, not the female, takes care of her babies for a long time, which, in case of imminent danger, can again hide in their father's brood pouch.

Seahorse Aquarium Neighbors

Seahorses are unpretentious and mysterious animals. They can easily get along with other fish and invertebrates. For them, only small fish, very slow and cautious, are suitable as neighbors. Such neighbors for skates can be fish - gobies and blennies. Among the invertebrates, one can single out the snail - an excellent aquarium cleaner, as well as not stinging corals.

It is also possible to place live stones in aquariums with sea needles, the main thing is that they are completely healthy and are not pathogens.

Where to buy a seahorse

In any online store of aquariums and pet stores, there are live pictures and photos of different types of seahorses that will help you choose the most ideal option.

It is here or in any pet store in your city that you can buy a seahorse at the best prices. In the future, many pet stores offer significant discounts for their regular customers, ranging from 10% or more when ordering a batch of seahorses.

Many have seen these marine life on TV or in aquariums, but not everyone realizes how interesting facts about the seahorse can surprise you. These beautiful representatives of fish amaze with their unique properties. However, in the wild it is very difficult to observe them. Moreover, the number of seahorses has recently declined sharply due to the destruction of their habitats.

1. Seahorses are the only fish that have a neck.. Scientists have proven that seahorses are relatives of needlefish. True, during the evolution of their body has changed a lot. Unlike other fish, skates are located vertically in the water due to the fact that the swim bladder is distributed throughout the body. The S-shape of the body allows skates to successfully hunt from cover. They freeze among algae or reefs, and when a tiny larva swims by, they capture it with a turn of their heads.
2. Skates can ride "on horseback" on fish. Due to their curved tail, seahorses can travel long distances. They grab the perch's fins and hold on until the fish swims into the algae. And the skates grab their pair with their tail and swim in an embrace.
3. The eyes of skates move independently of one another.. The organ of vision in a seahorse is similar to the eyes of a chameleon. One eye of these fish can look forward, and the other can see what is happening behind.
4. Disguise Skates. To avoid numerous enemies, seahorses allow the ability to change color depending on the location. Just like chameleons, seahorses match the color of their scales to the color of coral or algae, making them almost invisible.
5. Seahorses have a great appetite. They don't have teeth, they don't even have a stomach. In order not to die, these fish have to eat constantly. With their proboscises, skates draw in plankton, small larvae and crustaceans. And it happens so fast that it's hard to track.
6. Almost no one eats seahorses. These small fish can become the prey of other predators, perhaps by accident. They are almost entirely composed of bones, spines and scales, so there are few hunters for them, except perhaps rays and large crabs.
7. Seahorses are stressed. Stress is often a mortal danger for seahorses. These fish thrive in clean, calm water. Strong pitching at sea leads to the exhaustion of their forces. And with a sudden change of place of residence, they may even die. Therefore, it is difficult to breed skates in aquariums; in an artificial environment, they do not take root well.
8. The female chooses the male. We can say that seahorses have a matriarchy. After all, it is the females who decide which of the males to choose as a spouse.
9. Seahorses perform mating dances. For several days, the female performs a kind of dance together with the alleged chosen one, rising to the surface of the water and sinking to the bottom, intertwining her tails. If the male falls behind the bride, she will most likely leave him and look for another, more profitable party.
10. Male seahorses are "pregnant". If the female has chosen a suitable male for herself, then she remains faithful to him until the end of her life. It is to the male that she entrusts the gestation of eggs and care for the offspring. The female transfers the eggs to a special bag on the body of the male. There, future skates grow for a month and a half. And then they are born full-fledged fish. One male can simultaneously produce from 5 to 1.5 thousand fry. However, male seahorses still cannot be called pregnant. After all, fry are not born in their body, but only remain until full maturation. This is the function of protecting future offspring.

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11. Skates are fragile, but tenacious. One out of a hundred born seahorse fry survives to full-fledged adults. This is a very high figure for fish. It is thanks to this indicator that seahorses have not died out so far.

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12. The horse is on the coat of arms of the city of Zaozersk. For several years in a row, a seahorse was depicted on the coat of arms of the Russian city of Zaozersk (Murmansk region). The image was supposed to symbolize the naval power of the Northern Fleet. But, since seahorses are not found in the waters of the Barents Sea, the image of the seahorse was replaced by the image of a dolphin. It should be noted that seahorses are inhabitants of tropical and subtropical salt water bodies. And the largest seas of Russia are not included in this list.

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13. 30 types of skates are listed in the Red Book. And science knows only 32 species of these fish. There are several reasons for the extinction of seahorses. But almost all of them are related to human activities. In Thailand, Australia, Malaysia, skates are caught in order to dry and use as souvenirs. In oriental medicine, they are used to prepare medicines for asthma and skin diseases. In addition, the habitats of seahorses are polluted or completely destroyed by humans. And the plankton useful for skates is often eaten by jellyfish, which are beneficially affected by climate change.
14. Seahorses are a delicacy. A dish using the liver and eyes of seahorses is served in the most expensive restaurants in the world. These parts of skates are considered very tasty and healthy. The cost of a delicacy is an average of $ 800 per serving. And in China, fried skates are served on sticks.

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15. Skates live on Earth for 40 million years. Despite the fact that fossilized seahorses are rare, scientists have proven that these fish have existed for several tens of millions of years. They appeared at a time when, as a result of tectonic shifts in the earth's crust, shallows formed in the oceans and algae began to spread.

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The seahorse is an amazing and unusual representative of tropical waters. Its appearance and some features of life differ from representatives of the marine environment. Among connoisseurs of such individuals, the question is common: a seahorse is a fish or an animal. The answer to it is simple - the individual belongs to the animal kingdom and the class of ray-finned fish. After many years of research, scientists have proven that the animal is a close relative of the needlefish.

The seahorse belongs to the animal kingdom and the class of ray-finned fish.

General information

Since the animal is considered a highly modified species of pipefish, it belongs to the order Needle-shaped. The unusual body of the skate really resembles a piece in chess. Perhaps this was the reason for giving the animal such a name.

In the natural environment, you can meet the seahorse in subtropical and tropical reservoirs around the world. Salty and maximally pure water is the best condition for its comfortable living. The size of the seahorse is small and ranges from 2 to 30-32 cm. It is quite rare to find individuals that reach 35 cm in length.

There are many theories about where the seahorse lives, since it was met in different parts of the world. Most often, the animal can be found in the waters of Australia, sometimes England. Sometimes individual species are found in the Azov and Black Seas. It prefers to stay close to the bottom and uses the algae as cover, camouflaging itself in the algae and changing color according to the color of the algae.

The seahorse prefers to be at the bottom of the reservoir and hide in the algae.

The body of the fish is covered with a very hard and bony shell. which protects against the negative effects of the environment. Often there are spikes of different lengths and shapes on the body, some are covered with long ribbon-like processes of different colors. Surprisingly, this fish does not have scales. The head will become a feature of the structure, since it is very firmly attached to the body and does not turn. If the skate wants to look back, he turns his whole body or bulges his eyes.

Each eye moves separately from the other. This feature is also inherent in chameleons, which can rotate each eye separately in a circle. There is debate about how long seahorses live, as they usually live up to 4 years, but in some cases you can find representatives who live up to 6 years.

Another feature of the fish is its vertical position in the water. This is possible due to the fact that the swim bladder is divided into two sections by a thin septum and allows you to maintain a vertical position.

Popular types

There are about 50 species of seahorses in their natural habitat. Each of them differs in size, appearance and some features of the structure. The most common are the following:

In southern Japan, dwarf individuals can be found. They are painted in light colors with purple stripes or spots. Perfectly disguised as corals. They have a body length of no more than 3 cm. They prefer not to descend to a depth of more than 40 meters.

Nutrition Features

Amazing fish are one of the few species that are not hunted by other inhabitants of the deep sea. It's all about the structure of individuals, which is dominated by spikes and bone plates. Such food is not able to digest large predatory fish or other hunters. The only one who can eat a skate is a sand crab, whose stomach is able to digest what they eat.

The skates themselves feed on plankton.

The favorite delicacy of these unusual fish is crayfish cubs and other small fish. Thanks to the amazing ability of the skate to disguise itself and remain motionless for several hours, it successfully hunts them. It waits for the moment when the victim approaches and draws it along with water into its mouth.

Seahorses do not have a stomach. Therefore they are very greedy.

Despite their small size, seahorses are very voracious and are capable of hunting and eating a large number of small individuals up to 10 hours a day. This is due to the fact that individuals do not have a stomach, so food quickly passes through all parts of the digestive system. If you keep them in captivity, There are a few feeding rules to follow:

• Captive-bred individuals are capable of feeding on dead daphnia, shrimp, and other small individuals, as well as dry fish food.
• The food must be fresh.
• Individuals should be fed regularly, but overeating should not be allowed, since in captivity this can cause a variety of diseases.

It is allowed to install a variety of feeders in which food is placed. A few days after the installation of such an innovation, the individuals themselves will understand that this is a new place for eating. Near the feeders, several long rods or sticks should be installed so that the skates can cling to them while eating.

seahorse breeding

Unusual fish lead a sedentary lifestyle and are in one place almost all the time. In case of danger, they can develop a decent speed or attach themselves to large fish so that they move them to a safer place.

The fish is loyal and throughout life prefers to be close to one partner. Only in rare cases does a female or male change a life partner. The most incredible will be the fact that in a married couple, the male bears the offspring. After the start of spawning, the couple performs a certain mating dance for a long time. After that, the female transfers the eggs to a special pocket, which is located on the male's belly.

After 2 weeks of gestation, fry come out of the pocket, which are already independent and immediately set off for free swimming. Different types of seahorses differ in their fecundity and can lay from 5 to 2000 eggs at a time.

Breeding skates in captivity is quite difficult and an aquarium hobbyist will not be able to handle it. Despite the fact that individuals are quite popular among aquarists, keeping them in an artificial environment has many nuances. If the conditions are not met, they begin to get sick and die.

Currently, seahorses of various species are on the verge of extinction. This is due to the fact that in many countries the fish is an expensive delicacy, and it is caught on an industrial scale. In some regions of Australia and Asia, skates are used as a raw material for the preparation of various ointments and medicines.

Humanity has known about the healing properties of the meat of this amazing fish since ancient times and included it in many dishes. However, then amateur fishing could not significantly reduce the number of individuals. Now the catch has become a real problem, as it gradually leads to the complete disappearance of the species.

Amazing creatures, seahorses are not like any other living creatures on Earth at all, they look like they came from somewhere else on the planet. And from the point of view of biology, they are noticeably different from all other marine life, due to which they have long been the focus of attention of scientists. Although they look, of course, really funny, especially when they prance in the water.

Facts about seahorses

• In these creatures, it is not the female, as usual, who bears the offspring, but the male. It is the only such living being on earth.
• Seahorses got their name because of the visual resemblance to a horse, a chess piece.
• The smallest species of seahorses reach only 2 centimeters in length, and the largest - up to 30.
• They live only in warm tropical seas. Cold water is detrimental to them.
• Strictly speaking, seahorses are fish ().
• The whole body of these fish is covered with spikes. They serve as both camouflage and protection from predators, because seahorses do not know how to defend themselves.
• The closest biological relative of the seahorse is the pipefish. Scientists have come to the conclusion that they come from a common ancestor.
• In Chinese traditional medicine, eating skates is believed to increase male strength.
• They are able to mimic like chameleons. By changing the color of their body, they merge with the vegetation, thereby avoiding the attention of both predators and potential prey.
• The dorsal fin of a seahorse makes up to 30-35 movements per second.
• They all lead a very sedentary lifestyle, mainly due to the low speed of movement. The slowest fish in the world is the tiny pygmy seahorse, which can swim only 1.5-2 meters in an hour.
• Seahorses do not have a stomach - incoming food is immediately digested and waste is removed, so they need to eat continuously all their lives, otherwise they will die of starvation.
• Their eyes are able to look in different directions at the same time. Few living creatures on Earth have this feature.
• Despite their harmless appearance, all seahorses are predators. Being immobile, they wait until the prey is nearby, after which they grab it. Their victims are usually small crustaceans and shrimp ().
• The first seahorses appeared on Earth at least 13 million years ago. This is exactly the age of their oldest fossilized remains discovered by paleontologists.
• These amazing creatures are monogamous. Having found a mate for themselves, they are not separated from a partner all their lives.
• Seahorses do not do well in aquariums because they are stressed. Once in an unfamiliar environment, they are constantly afraid, nervous and often refuse to eat, eventually dying of hunger and nervous exhaustion.
• They live only in clear and calm water, but the pitching, for example, in an aquarium on board a ship, can kill them.
• When choosing a mate, the decisive choice is always made by the female seahorse, not the male.
• The male seahorse carries fertilized eggs in a special pocket, which his female places there, and then releases the already formed fry. And they can be born as 2-3, and 1000-1500 - as lucky.
• In total, there are 32 species of seahorses in the world, but 30 of them are on the verge of extinction. The greatest danger for them is a person - they are actively caught because of their unusual appearance in order to turn them into souvenirs.
• Immediately after birth, tiny seahorse fry swim away from their parents, left to their own devices.
• Seahorses sometimes travel astride larger fish. They cling to their fins, and leave their vehicle after reaching a place suitable for them like a kelp bed ().
• According to scientists, only 1% of fry survive to adulthood.
• In China, about 20 million seahorses are caught annually, and this is only official statistics without taking into account poaching.

Hello, my dear young readers and wise parents! New topic in the "Projects" section! ShkolaLa helps prepare a message about the seahorse. Whatever grade of elementary school you are in, a report about this inhabitant of the sea will be an indispensable highlight in the lesson of the world around. Read on and you'll understand why.

Lesson plan:

What kind of animal is a seahorse?

This aquatic inhabitant with an outstanding appearance by no means looks like a fish. But in fact, it belongs to the needle-shaped fish family. Most of all, he looks like a chess piece, which is why he was probably so nicknamed.

The body is crocheted, the back is a hump, the abdomen is forward. Yes, and his head is that of a horse, and his mouth extended into a tube resembles a muzzle, and when he moves, he leans on a tail twisted into a ring.

Why not a horse in miniature!

This fish is also called a dragon, since many species really resemble this fairy-tale character with their wings spread out to the sides, except that there are not three heads, but only one!

In total, there are up to 50 species of seahorses, the size of which can be up to 30 centimeters. But the smallest of them is dwarf, it is only 2 centimeters tall. Almost 30 species are listed in the Red Book.

It is interesting! Research scientists have proven that the closest relative of the seahorse is the needlefish, from which it separated as much as 23 million years ago! Today, numerous long spikes have been preserved from the progenitor of the fish.

Where can you see a seahorse? It lives in the tropics and subtropics. His home is thickets of algae and coral reefs of the Black Sea, the Atlantic, the Pacific Ocean, the coast of Australia, the Japanese Yellow Sea and the Russian Sea of ​​Azov.

It is interesting! Seahorses are great at playing hide-and-seek and master the art of camouflage to perfection. They have special cells - chromatophores, which color the horse under its environment. At the same time, you can see the water chameleon only by the nose sticking out of the algae.

Most often, miniature horses are brown, yellowish or green, but those that live among corals are red and purple. Like a Christmas tree toy, such horses hang in the depths of the sea, clinging to the plants with their tail.

How do seahorses swim?

It is difficult to call a seahorse a fish also because it does not swim like everyone else. His body is located vertically in the water. The swim bladder, which runs along the body, helps him maintain balance. It is divided into two parts: the head is larger than the abdominal, so the skate swims upright.

By changing the volume of gas in the bubble, the fish runs, rising up, and also plunging to the depth. If something happens to a skate's bubble, he has no choice but to lie still until he dies.

It is interesting! Dwarf representatives are the slowest fish in the world. They move, as they say, "a teaspoon per hour" - only one and a half meters in 60 minutes.

The tail of the fish is very flexible and without fins, the seahorse uses it like an anchor, clinging to corals and plants. By the way, he can hug his girlfriend with them.

But it cannot row with its tail. To do this, there is a movable fin on the back and a pair of pectoral fins.

Given this structure, the seahorse swimmer is no good, and he strives to compete, spending most of his time in a hovering state, staring around.

What's on the Seahorse's Menu?

The water horse feeds on plankton - small crustaceans, which it hunts down, actively rotating its eyes. The tiny mouth of the fish is located at the end of the muzzle-tube.

As soon as the food approaches the little hunter, he puffs out his cheeks and, like a vacuum cleaner, strongly sucks the crustaceans.

It is interesting! These fish have no teeth or stomach. Their digestive organs are a direct-flow engine that constantly needs to be refueled.

Tiny horses can hang around waiting for food for up to 10 hours, they don’t even need to hunt much, sit in one place, and dinner floats by. Moreover, as we have already understood, he is no swimmer. So a lazy glutton eats up to 3.5 thousand crustaceans per day.

pregnant dads

Yes, we were not mistaken! This is just the only case when pregnancy is not a woman's business. In seahorses, males carry offspring! For this, the male has a bag on his abdomen that looks like a kangaroo, where eggs are laid.

Of these, after 40 days, up to 1,500 miniature seahorses appear.

It is interesting! The seahorse is the only fish that has a neck.

But a frivolous mother all these days visits a friend only in the morning, carelessly sailing away after five minutes of a date until the next day on her own business. Or maybe just forget about it!

Even after birth, dad takes care of the offspring: at the first danger, he gives them a signal, and they instantly hide securely in his bag.

Do seahorses have enemies?

Although the body of a seahorse is covered with a hard bony shell and spikes, and the fish is too tough for most, it can be a dinner for crabs or rays.

However, the biggest danger for him is a person. The unique appearance of the fish and its beneficial properties have become the reasons for the massive catch.

Seahorses are caught for souvenirs, for preparing expensive oriental dishes and for medical purposes.

It is interesting! When searching for food, as well as for vigilance, these fish manage to look with both eyes at the same time in different directions. And their organs of vision can look like this: one forward, and the other to control what is happening behind.

They try to keep exotic seahorses in aquariums, but they do not adapt well to the artificial environment. If nothing threatens the fish, then it can live up to 5 years.

So briefly we talked about an amazing creature with the body of a horse, a kangaroo bag, the rotating eyes of a chameleon and the tenacious tail of a monkey.

I hope you will interest the whole class with your story. And for clarity, print out photos of these exotic fish or, if possible, show them this video. Let the guys see that they are really unique.

See you soon on the ShkolaLa blog and in the Projects section

Success in your studies!

Evgenia Klimkovich