Hi, I'm new

[Nancy]

Hi,

Here's Ollie, who was in a 46 gallon bowfront and I was afraid she would outgrow it. She was with me about 10 months - I think she was about 3-4 months old when she arrived.

She was not the only large bimac, either.

Also - octos are very sensitive to ammonia and nitrites.

Nancy

 

[ceph_dude]

wow, kinda big...... is there a smaller kind of octopus i can buy? mom would kill me if it got that big....

 

[cthulhu77]

"Greg, do you have any first-hand experience using an Eclipse system?

I've been keeping marine aquariums since the mid-80's (including Octos in the late 80's, early 90's until I moved away from San Diego), and have used the Eclipse both currently and in the past."

Yep. Was in the trade when they made their debut...it is a nice FRESHWATER system...it was not designed for, nor is it good for, a marine system. Will it work...yes, barely. It is not built for the bacterial loads that come with a salt system, and can crash easily...there is no redundancy to it.
Keeping a skimmer IN the tank is rather perplexing...I don't see much merit in it.
I am happy that you have had such phenominal success with Eclipse systems...I like them for my dwarf cichlids just fine, but would not use one for a saltwater setup. I have seen them used for salt before...and yeah, they get by...and that is it...I think your photos of your "reef" tanks is ample evidence to that end...not meaning to put you down at all, I am happy that you love the system so well....but it really is not the best way to keep an octo.
greg

 

[Black96WS6]

No worries, we just have different points of view, and I understand you have to look out for the new marine aquarist who's never done this before.

However, I don't plan on my next Octo starting out as a 3-4 month old adult that looks like its previous owner fed it as much as it could eat each day before I got it

And it's not like the tank is going to be bare, there will be live rock, pvc pipe, etc, for bacteria to colonize, as well as a sand bed, so, worse case scenario, something fails (which I've never heard of), the live rock and sand will still be there, as will oxygenation from the air stone via air pump.

And obviously, anything in the tank is fair game for the Octopus, but that goes with the territory

 

[Black96WS6]

By the way, did I mention I'm the president of Marineland?

 

[Black96WS6]

JUST KIDDING! Hehe

 

[Black96WS6]

wow, kinda big...... is there a smaller kind of octopus i can buy? mom would kill me if it got that big....

You could try getting a pygmy octopus, however those are a little hard to come by...

 

[ceph_dude]

Do you have any idea where I can get a pygmy octothat is aroiund Stroudsburg PA? If not, thats ok ( I just won't tell my mom exactly how big they get ) lol .

 

[ceph_dude]

She'll never know....................

 

[Black96WS6]

Do you have any idea where I can get a pygmy octothat is aroiund Stroudsburg PA? If not, thats ok ( I just won't tell my mom exactly how big they get ) lol .

No idea! I'm not sure if any place has them right now.

Also, generally speaking, the larger the octo, the longer it will live.

Perhaps someone more familiar with pygmys can chime in here and give you a lifespan range. I'm more familiar with local bimacs here in San Diego.

Another thing to think about, getting it from a fish store, you have no idea how old it is, it could be a full-grown adult with only a few weeks left to live!

 

[H. lunulata]

pygmys live only up to 6 months

 

[Black96WS6]

Wow, now that IS a short lifespan!

 

[H. lunulata]

well like you said the smaller they are thhe shorter they live

 

[H. lunulata]

although there are some reports of them living to 7 months but that is very unheard of

 

[cthulhu77]

...and six months is a "full term"...usually, you will get them when they have a few weeks, or maybe a month at best...

We have collected O digueti before, and are toying around with trying to obtain some eggs this year...but, (and there are a lot of buts) we shall see...paperwork is a nightmare!
greg