Finally!!!

[rudy]

I have been trying to get an octopus for over 1 year. Finally (after I gave up home and took down my 30 gallon cube) I found one.

All I have is a 6 gallon jbj nano cycled for holding. Which is fine as the octo is very small and quite frankly I was not expecting it to aclimatize very well. Thankfully it did and it is awesome! Eating shrimp from a stick as is very interactive after 3 days

It was sold as a Bimac, however I am thinking it is a Vulgaris so want to make sure I have a big enough home for him. I went out yesterday and bought a 72 gallon with an air tight lid with a rena xp4 canister took out the media and filled with live rock. I siliconed the hoses into the lid so there are no gaps. No skimmer right now however that is my first question is:
1. what skimmer would be the best for this setup and what precautions could I take to make sure the octo is not sucked in to the intake. I was thinking I should wait to buy one until he gets a bit bigger.
2. A friend is selling me 35 lbs of figi rock and I have about 10 lbs in the tank he is in Both have been established for over 2 years. If I move it to the 72 will I see much of an ammonia spike?
3. Will a 72 be o.k. for a solo vulgaris
4. How should I decorate it?
5. Would I be o.k. bare bottom, or should I have a sand bed.
6. Tips and suggestions on moving the octo to his new home would be appreciated

I realize this is not the best situation, however please understand my hopes of getting an octo were gone. I just could not pass this up. Any help would be appreciated.

 

[monty]

Could you give a bit more background about where this octo came from, how large it is, and what info you have on it? I'm guessing a very small octo showed up at your LFS and they just said "Bimac or Vulgaris" because those were the only two species they'd heard of, but you were pretty vague. If it's a vulgaris, even the 72gal will be way too small. I doubt it's a bimac, either, though, since they're not really being sold much right now... did they say where it came from?

In any case, the 6gal is way too small-- watch the water params like a hawk until the 72 is ready, but the general attitude is that you can't rush cycling the 72, either. So your octo is rather between a rock and a hard place... perhaps some of the experienced tank keepers will have more helpful suggestions, though.

I believe 300gal is the recommended size for an adult vulgaris. However, it also sounds like the people who sold you the octo have no idea what it is, so you should probably not panic about that yet until you have an better ID. In the time I've been around TONMO, I can't remember a single case of an octo sold by an LFS as a vulgaris actually turning out to be one... if you're lucky, it's one of the dwarf species that have been turning up a lot lately... I'd be surprised if it's a bimac either, since AFAIK no LFS supplier is currently breeding or collecting them.

 

[rudy]

I went and asked. IT came from Indonesia for sure, it was shipped with a Wonderpus.

It is brown sometimes but will blend completely with the live rock int he tank to the point you can't find it. Even the eyes. Head that is probably one inch. Legs are probably 5cm.

Any suggestions?

 

[Animal Mother]

Have you tried looking here? http://www.cephbase.utmb.edu/

 

[Nancy]

Have a look at this photo of a bimac.
Cephalopod Care
A bimac has false eyespots, and you can see them in the photo. Yours would have small eyespots, but they should be visible, if it's a bimac. (And a bimac is not the only species with false eyespots.) If there are no eyespots, then perhaps it's something else.

Nancy

 

[rudy]

I thought he was gone today. Came home and could not find him so looked in the pump at the back of the aquarium (in the chamber) and found a brown mush at the pump. So I thought I would do this right and moved everything into the 75. 40 lbs of rock and the sand and rock from the 6 gallon. Moving the rock around my buddy appeared. Happy as ever and not affected by the move. He must have been hidden good as I looked everywhere. I got a pick of him as he proceeded to take shrimp from my hand. he definately has the spot like a bimac. (not blue on it but black with a white outline). His head also has a numch of pimple like spots that stick up. (sorry that is the only way I can explain them.

I am very happy he is alive. I just hope this tank does not cycle to much

 

[rudy]

BTW his eyes glow very white under actinic lights

This is exactly what the spots on the head look like.
http://www.cephbase.utmb.edu/imgdb/...D=&CephID=507&Location=&Keywords=&LowestTaxa=

One other thing I noticed as he sometimes get a white line down his head.

Incredibly interactive!!

Will post pics when I figure out what my wife did to the the computer

 

[Nancy]

Glad you found your little buddy! It's nice to have such an interactive octopus.

It's early to move him to the larger tank - it probably will cycle. You need to watch ammonia levels very carefully and be prepared to do a lot of partial water changes.

About an inch of sand would be nice, but it's a little late now. Maybe eventually add some live sand, a little at a time.

You need to cover all intakes in some way - use netting and a cable tie or rubberband, mesh, some even use sponge.

75 is too small for a vulgaris, but will do for a while, and as we said, you don't know for sure what you have.

Nancy

 

[DrBatty]

It is hard to say what species he is....

I could be totally out on a limb here, but I thought bimacs were cold water species...I believe you said your octo was from Indo.... and Indonesia is not very chilly at all!

My octo was also supposedly from Indonesia, labeled an A. Aculeatus.....but later turned out not to be one [and still I speculate what he could have been]. Having photos of your new buddy will help a great deal in ID.

Also, as Nancy said, your new tank will cycle, as any tank would....Octos are meant to be transferred into tanks that have already cycled for a few months, so you'll have to be extra diligent testing the parameters of that tank you've put him in. Good luck!

 

[rudy]

Pics posted in id section


Also wanted to mention I appreciate the fact that nobody is flaming this thread. I realize this is not an ideal situation and am prepared to work to make it right.

If possible could you advise whether I should or should not get a skimmer at this point. He is solo in the 75

 

[cuttlegirl]

Get a skimmer, it really helps with all of the waste that any cephalopod produces... Water changes are going to be necessary while your tank is cycling...