Octopus

[AndyL]

Hey all,

I know one of the shops got one this summer (saw a post asking about care on a forum this morning, from august). Just curious, do you guys know of any shops down there with octopuses? Or who can reliably order them in? (Do I dare ask that ugly $$$ question?)

Andy

[Gools]

I know in the states they sell for just under $50 aquacultered. I've never seen they up here, but my guess would be to double the states, price wise.
http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?pCatId=534&cc=1

[Quinn]

I've seen them at one of the less reputable stores in Calgary. I would definitely make sure you are getting an aqua-cultured specimen. There's a good cephalopod forum on RC you will also want to check out.

[Nemain]

The family pet store in Sherwood Park had one in this weekend. It was a special order for a customer though. Such interesting and beautiful creatures. I watched it for nearly a half hour!

I have wanted one for a while, I am just not prepared for it.. and the life expectancy is so short.. I just dont have enough burial boxes for short lived pets.

Beth

[bulletsworld]

WOW! Damn It's probably gone to its new home already. I have never seen one but always wanted to. Damn! I think they would be so exciting to watch and see!

:multi:

[mpishi]

i've often thought an octopus would make an interesting tank set up

done a little reading, just wondering if a thread on care and husbandry was ever run on canreef

[AndyL]

On canreef - not that I've seen - however http://www.tonmo.com/ has all the info you'll ever need

Andy

[fortheloveofcrabs]

I would have sworn that AI had a blue-ring about a month ago. I didn't see it in person but I was mentioned to me somehow. I don't really recall it all so well, but I 99% sure they had one for a little while.

[Quinn]

That would disappoint me greatly.

:bad-word:

[muck]

I was at AI today and they had a cuttlefish...

[Quinn]

That bothers me much less, as cuttlefish are reportedly bred in captivity, although a comparative psychologist I know who studies cephalopods insists they're not.

[guysmiley]

I also remember seeing one there a while back. Maybe a couple of months now. I'm pretty sure it wasn't as blue ring. I thought blue rings were deadly? Don't they kill people?

Garrick.

[Quinn]

Extremely so, the most dangerous animal on Earth according to many. But for some absurd reason, they are imported fairly regularly.

[guysmiley]

I make it a policy not to keep pets that can kill me....... I would think that any store that sells one without the purchaser signing a waiver would be opening themselves up to a wee bit of liability.
Makes you wonder.


Garrick.

[muck]

To own a poisinous snake you need a special permit.
Why is there no permit required for the blue-ringed octopus..?? :confused:

[guysmiley]

The only thing I can think is that it's less likely for an octopus to crawl across the street and get into your neighbours bed than a snake. Plus I hate snakes. :mrgreen:

[AndyL]

Probably, because like much of the tropical fish industry - its unregulated - as its not considered a threat...

Octopus ID is also a lot more iffy than snakes and other species...

Andy

[Quinn]

Blue-rings are pretty easy to spot... they are yellow and the blue rings appear when they are angry. On occasion they also turn pink. Adults are about the size of a golf ball.

As far as climbing out of aquariums, octopuses are known for this...

[Cap'n]

octopi

[Jaws]

Supposedly one will not even feel the sting from a Blue Ring and won't even find out they've been stung until close to 24 hours later when they're already on the verge of dying. Killer Instinct can be a very cool show to watch on TV.

[muck]

The blue ring's venom is potent enough to kill within minutes... :eek:

[AndyL]

octopi

Nope octopuses... There's a long diatribe on reefcentral and tomno about this.

Andy

[Cap'n]

Really.

That's just silly.
Dictionary says octopi.
Besides, how often to you get to use such a cool plural?

[Quinn]

Andy is correct. "Octopi" is applying a latin plural form to a greek word. I first learnt this from an expert in the field: http://www.psych.uleth.ca/Links/Evolution/jmevolution.html.

I've wondered in the past if the plural of "Jesus" is "Jesi". Probably not. :mrgreen:

[Cap'n]

breakphi - many morning meals

[TSUNAMI]

Hi guys/gals I'm new to the forum.

You might want to check out the following site for the National Resource Center for Cephalopods (NRCC) if your intersted in cuttlefish or octopi. It is quite informative and has many links to other sites.

http://www.nrcc.utmb.edu/

Years ago when I worked at an aquarium I had the pleasure of working with John Forsythe of the NRCC to aquire several specimens of the European Cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis) for display purposes. They have been breeding and rearing several species of cephalopods for many years now at the NRCC. They provide specimens to other reaserch/teaching facilities as well as public aquariums but they do not provide to private businesses or to induviduals. :cry:

European cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis) require large homes as the grow to about one foot in length. Their aquarium should be dedicated solely to them as they are incredibly aggressive predators with an almost insatiable appetite! They will tackle fish larger than themselves and are even prone to eating one another if insufficient food is provided!

I found them to posses an almost "alien intelligence" which I found truly fascinating when you concider the fact that these animals are actually invertebrates. They "communicate" with one another utilizing several different methods. Firstly the use thier chromatiphores (pigment cells) to display a wide variety of patterns and color tones. I have observed on many occasions, that while stalking prey they will use multiple alternating bands of dark and light moving down their bodies at high speed mimicking the glitter lines produced by the overhead lighting. They turn almost white when frightened and display a "zebra" pattern when angry or mating. They are able change the texture of their skin from smooth to something that looks like it was macrame'd by your grandmother, in the wink of an eye. In addition to all of this they contort their tentacles into a variety of shapes when displaying to one another.

Once while I was in the aquarium in London, England I came upon a tank containing several of these beauties. They were all showing signs of being distressed (white in color with very rough skin texture and hugging the bottom at the back of the tank) as several children were pounding the glass of their tank trying to get them to do something. :evil: I quickly shot an angry look at their parents and the offending brats were reeled in promptly. After they left, I observed them for several minutes, but they did not show any sign of activity. I then remembered that while I had kept them, that it was possible to interact with them by using your fingers to mimic a territorial display they make with their tentacles. All one has to
do is place your fingers and thumb all together in a bunch and point them at the cuttlefish. Move them slowly from side to side until they notice them ( they are acutely aware of everything around them) and pop your index finger and next finger over, straight up like a peace sign. I had only done this with the cuttlefish I had kept myself, and was overjoyed to see the reaction of these sorry looking individuals when I tried it on them.
Instantly the color returned to their skin and all three of them rushed the front glass and used their tentacles to make the territorial display!!! They then carried on as normal after that, displaying to one another, reestablishing their individual territories and swimming normally. I left wishing I could rescue these animals from those circumstances.

Alas these are some of the shortest lived animals around. From the time they hatch to the time they die is only one to two years maximum!


I will always consider myself very fortunate to have been able to work with these wonderful creatures. I would recommend them to anyone that can secure captive raised specimens as most wholesalers shipping them haven't a clue about how to ship them successfully. I would also recommend that you are prepared to provide them with an adequate habitat ( 72"L x 18"W or 48"L x 24"W MINIMUM!)

Cheers all!

Tsunami

[TSUNAMI]

Help! I am THE "village idiot" when it comes to computers! :redface:
Could some one please get back to me about how I would go about posting a pic in a reply?
I would like to post a pic of a european cuttlefish in a
territorial display pose, in relation to my previous post.

Thanx again!
Tsunami

[Quinn]

Very good post. Dr. Jennifer Mather here at the U of L is studying exactly what you mention, communication among cephalopods using their chromatophores, except in squids in the Caribbean.

To post an image just enclose the URL of the image in and tags. Also see http://www.canreef.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=8276

[TSUNAMI]

This is a pic of the territorial display of the european cuttlefish.....
(* note: this is not my photo!)

http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/1316seppia104B.jpg[/img]

Thanx for your help Teevee!!

[muck]

Tsunami,

Edit your post and add pg[/img] after "...officinalis.j"
then your pic should work.

[TSUNAMI]

Thanx Muck!!
I finally got it!!
whooohooo!! :multi:

[bulletsworld]

WOW, GOOD POST, TSUNAMI! Very Fascinating! Thanks for posting! Makes me wanta read all about them now. Very cool!

Wow, you worked at the big aquarium in London. :eek: I'm green with envy...my dream job. :mrgreen:

[TSUNAMI]

Hi Bulletsworld, you misunderstood, I was only visiting the aquarium in London while on vacation there. It's a small aquarium located in the basement of a building along the river. Right between The Eye of London
(that humoungous ferris wheel) and the bridge that leads across the river
to Big Ben. It's a small facility that seems extremely outdated for being located in such a vibrant international city. It's worth a visit if you happen to be there and may have been updated since my visit. Here' a link if your interested.

http://www.londonaquarium.co.uk/

Cheers!
T