2 O.Mercatoris

I have the larger mysis I use for my mini carpets, I think I will try these. I will experiment :madsci:
I did a small water change in the most unobtrusive manner I could. This morning the 15 looked a little cloudy. I started by testing for amonia, nitrates, and checked PH, everyhting tested perfect :hmm: It looks better now. I am watching it as I do with all my tanks. I used to be idiotic about my tank chemestry, I ran a battery of tests daily. LFS people used to laugh at me.
 
I don't know that the term idiotic applies, over zealous perhaps but marine aquarium keeping is a hobby with so may unknowns and variations that it suits a wide variety of people's definitions of hobby (other than maintenance free or no effort). Over testing causes no harm, unlike some of the additives that are pushed on the market.
 
dwhatley;151893 said:
I don't know that the term idiotic applies, over zealous perhaps but marine aquarium keeping is a hobby with so may unknowns and variations that it suits a wide variety of people's definitions of hobby (other than maintenance free or no effort). Over testing causes no harm, unlike some of the additives that are pushed on the market.

Idiotic.....yup, that's me :wink:
 
Attempted to feed Zuzu last night. She wanted nothing to do with it. She repeatedly blew a jet of water at the food. I have never seen this before, I didn't expect it. She has plenty of crabs in the tank so I won't worry. I will keep trying each night.
Zuzu is in the same spot this morning, right in the front. She has however grabbed a couple more shells that she is using hide behind sort of. She is always looking with one eye exposed.

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Here's where I posted my observations on what to look for.

http://www.tonmo.com/forums/showthread.php?19773-Care-and-Concerns

On another note, is the eye that you can see responsive to light? I would take it as a good sign that it's drawing shells up around itself and around it's den, this shows that it has good motor control over its arms and suckers, but not eating bothers me. Of course, you have crabs in the tank so it may simply not be hungry, but are you finding any shells near its den from the crabs?
 
davelin315;151929 said:
Here's where I posted my observations on what to look for.

http://www.tonmo.com/forums/showthread.php?19773-Care-and-Concerns

On another note, is the eye that you can see responsive to light? I would take it as a good sign that it's drawing shells up around itself and around it's den, this shows that it has good motor control over its arms and suckers, but not eating bothers me. Of course, you have crabs in the tank so it may simply not be hungry, but are you finding any shells near its den from the crabs?


She ate an emerald crab the night before last, I beleive you can see remains in an earlier photo. Yes eye is responsive. When I come within view I can see her move a bit. I think tensing up with fright so I try to view at a distance from around he corrner most of the time.
 
In my inexperienced opinion, that's a good sign that the eye is responsive. If she's responsive to movement, then she's still thinking. I would guess she's simply not hungry if she's got lots of food out there at her disposal.
 
Wow...How exciting! I hope ZuZu survives! Sometimes they get so stressed with the shipping and I've seen first hand even though the package is stamped fragile I witnessed a delivery man tossing one of my previous octos from hand to hand as he got out of the truck until he saw me. Jerks....anyway keeping fingers crossed for Zuzu! And her coloring looks really good in that last pic plus you can see attitude which the little ones have!!!
 
The one eye on constant watch (Sleazy keeps this posture even when sleeping and the eye is closed) with arms wrapped around the eye and back to the mantle is a classic mercatoris pose. I suggest putting a few more shells just out of arms reach. My female mercs liked to switch shells every few days but I don't think that is explicit to the mercs as Maya swapped hers every couple of days. I have not had a merc to den down into the sand but it looks like she is elevated from the bottom a little. She might still take a barnacle den if you find a cluster for her but she seems to like this den just fine. If you are not toom much of a woose, offer a live crab by holding it in front of her den. Be patient, it may take her as much as 15 minutes to decide to accept it. Blowing at things to get them to go away is typical of all octos but I think the mercs are more brazen about it. Sleazy was blowing me to go away last night and I was only moving my finger on the OUTSIDE of the tank.
 
Crow-
My son worked for FedEx, I know the packages are misshandled, it's a maricle anything arrives alive.

D-
Neither Morpheus or Ollie ever did this blowing. I know this is one of their behaviors but didn't expect it. I will try a live fiddler, we'll see who's a woose. Really now, why do you keep calling me that?? :razz:
 
we'll see who's a woose. Really now, why do you keep calling me that??
Because you do more damage to your hands cleaning your tanks every week than if you put your hand into a bucket of male fiddlers. Yes, they pinch and it hurts (like being jabbed with a pin when putting material together) but it is so easy to disable them just by grabbing both claws.
 
Zuzu has moved into a new den. :smile:
She took the snail shell she had chosen her first day in the tank with her.

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Yesterday I constructed a feeding stick for her. I crazy glued a 4" piece of plastic guitar string to a straw. It looks goofy but it works. I stand next to the tank so she can't see me. I fed her a sliver of shrimp, she ate it. She wouldn't let go of the guitar string so I just let her have it, the straw caused it to float, I grabbed it later.
 
You are showing great MacGgyvering skills! I think my others might have taken frozen shrimp if I had sized it properly, it sure makes feeding easier and Sleazy contines to eat well for us. Next up, try handing her a large fiddler crab claw (just holding the crab by the claw will usually get them to drop it without causing harm to the crab :twisted:)

Is ZuZu actualy in a shell or just in a crevice?
 
I am not sure if she is actually in a barnacle or in between two. This barnacle cluster has some set back so it just might be one. Here is my feeding contraption. Looks pretty wierd but it gets the job done :biggrin2:
(sorry about the glare)

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