Help with Identification

[ArsnikOne]

Hello, I am new not only to Tonmo, but to Octos in general. I have read alot here on Tonmo and have learned a great deal. I keep other reef tanks and have contimplated setting up an octo tank for some time. I finally did so a few months back, and recently purchased my first octo at a local LFS. They did not know it's details. I now realize that it was a bad thing to purchase an octo without knowledge of it's species, hence no idea what size it will grow or if it has much life left in it at all...

He seems very healthy. I have had him in the tank now for over two weeks. He ate the very first night I had him... He has since eaten one live shrimp (3"-4")
each night and a crab every third night or so. His mantle is a bit smaller than a golf ball and his tentacles are approximately 6"-8". He changes colors from a deep blood red, to various shades of browns, even to sand white with teal blue dots. He also always seems to have a neon green tint to him... I have named him Doc Oc. Probably a played out name, but I dig it!

I have done some research, and based on his appearance and the location in which he was collected (Caribbean), I believe him to be a O. Briareus

However, as I am no expert, I was hoping I could get a second opinion.
I have attached a couple pics, take a look and let me know.

Greatly Appreciated,

Justin

 

[monty]

Justin and Doc Oc! I agree that he looks like a briareus, but I'm still an apprentice in the octo ID department...

 

[ArsnikOne]

Thanks for the quick reply and second opinion Monty. After writting the initial inquiry, I read elsewhere on Tonmo that Briareus is very common in the FL Keys. I live in Miami and I beleive he was collected off Key Largo... Also, the bottom of his tentacles tend to stay a white color. Not sure if this is relative...

Anyone else who would like to put their is welcome.

Thanks

 

[Animal Mother]

I second that second opinion.

 

[cuttlegirl]

Justin and Doc Oc!

 

[simple]

yea it is probably Briareus, does it have a lot of "webbing" between tentacles? Try looking at the journal of Fluffy as well as his videos on you tube, and see if yours looks like hers. By the way i live in miami as well, what part do you live in? and where do you get your food? i was just wondering..

 

[DWhatley]

One of the tell-tale signs of a Briarius is supposed to be that if you shine a light on it at night it will fluoresce green. I don't know of anyone who has tried this though (and I don't know why not) to see if the information is valid (supposedly divers find them this way during night dives).

 

[corw314]

They also can do that coloration on their own as Egor was a Briarius and I photo'd him many times looking very flourscent with out any light hitting him. And

 

[ArsnikOne]

Thanks for all the input. I feel it safe to conclude that I am dealing with O. Briareus. There is no doubt that he puts of a green erodescent glow...
Very interesting!

I have noticed that some nights when feeding, he will attack and kill the shrimp, then eat very little of it. This is odd, as 90% of the time, the only thing left is the head and shell. It first happened with a shrimp that was larger than normal, I thought the size of the shrimp may have been the reasoning. However, he has since done it with a shrimp of normal size. I'm not sure if perhaps he has intentions of coming back and feeding again later, as I have been hesitant to leave the shrimp remains in the tank. Would leaving them in overnight to see if they end up getting eaten be that bad of a thing for the water quality???

 

[corw314]

Any uneaten food I always remove immediately. It could be he is full and this is why he is not finishing it entirely. How often are you feeding? Biddle gets fed when he begs like a dog which is about every day and 1/2 or so.

 

[zombie]

vulgaris identification

I purchased an octo from a local pet store under the impression that it was a juvenile octopus vulgaris. Do the juveniles have the spots on the sides like the bimacs? I have 3 bimacs as well, and this one looks different. Larger body for its size and a different coloration, but it has the spots on the side, not quite as bright and distinct as the others I have. Also, has anyone purchased from Tampa Bay saltwater? I was planning on obtaining a baby vulgaris from them. They are pricey, but if they sell quality and accurately represent what they sell.....???? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Animal Mother]

I purchased an octo from a local pet store under the impression that it was a juvenile octopus vulgaris. Do the juveniles have the spots on the sides like the bimacs? I have 3 bimacs as well, and this one looks different. Larger body for its size and a different coloration, but it has the spots on the side, not quite as bright and distinct as the others I have. Also, has anyone purchased from Tampa Bay saltwater? I was planning on obtaining a baby vulgaris from them. They are pricey, but if they sell quality and accurately represent what they sell.....???? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Vulgaris don't have eyespots. Hummelincki/Filosus looks very similar to Vulgaris but does have eyespots.

 

[zombie]

Thanks for the reply. What is the common name for that type of octopi? Hummelincki/Filosus? Can you share any details about them? size? life expectancy? water temp? Thanks

 

[Animal Mother]

Thanks for the reply. What is the common name for that type of octopi? Hummelincki/Filosus? Can you share any details about them? size? life expectancy? water temp? Thanks

Cephbase.org is a great source with pictures of various species.

Filosus is also known as the Caribbean Two-Spot Octo, about 15 inches tip to tip maximum size... life expectancy is probably the same as most other medium sized octos. They are Caribbean, so 72-78 degrees would be ideal.

 

[Nancy]

A number of octopus species have the false eyespot (ocellus).

The patterns in the ocellus are different for different species, so it's helpful to get a good close up photo of the patterns and colors, if you're asking for identification.

Nancy