ID Help Please!

[JoeTwo]

Hi,

First I'd like to thank all the TONMO contributors. I've been a lurker for several months now, and I have found the site to be both an interesting and invaluable octopus resource. Two days ago, I acquired my first octo, Samwise, so I felt compelled to finally register.

As first order of business, I'm hoping to ID my new octo. While the LFS seemed knowledgeable about care, all the info they could offer was that it is a juvenile "Caribbean" octopus and not a pygmy. It is a little bigger than a golf ball when balled up and its total arm span seems to be about 8". Please let me know if you have any ideas as to what it might be. I apologize in advance for the quality of the pictures, but I wanted to avoid frightening it with a flash. The first two show what might be its normal coloration while I was drip acclimating it (pictured with an emerald crab) - tan with dark brown striped patterns. The third shows it right after being placed into the tank. Upon entering the water, it promptly changed to a solid blue/brown and jetted out of sight behind live rock.

Additionally, while I'm glad I've provided plenty of hiding places, I haven't seen the octopus since placing it in the tank. I know it is eating based upon empty crab shells, but I would like to know when I might expect it to become a little braver and venture out from its hiding spot so that i can enjoy it. I'll try to add better pictures once it does.

Thanks in advance for the help.

-Tommy

 

[JoeTwo]

I noticed tonight that when Samwise is "walking" around the tank, he tends to bump into things before going around them. For example, rather than smoothly move around things, he often will walk his head directly into a rock, pause for a moment, then decide to go under it. Is this normal? Also, is it because I'm in the room? As in, is he focused on me, reducing his awareness of his surroundings?

 

[DWhatley]

Octo clumsiness has been observed in hummelincki (Samwise is not) often. The observations, however, have been different. Hummelincki seem to have difficulty figuring out how to not stick to glass (and perhaps even more so to acrylic) when they are first place in a tank. This diminishes after about a month and navigation is smooth. We have also seen senescent hummelincki bump into tank walls even though they are familiar with the environment. I don't recall other forms of clumsiness reported but sometimes my memory gets a little clumsy too

 

[JoeTwo]

So up until about two days ago, my octopus was becoming more and more social every day. He was still afraid of any offers of physical interaction (i.e. when the lid of the tank was opened), but would spend several hours each day roaming the tank and parking on the front glass. Then suddenly about three days ago, I noticed he began digging out a hole under a large live rock and then holed up in it. Since doing this, I've seen him for no more than a minute or so per day, and when I do, he leaves only momentarily to get food then promptly hides again. Any ideas what could have caused this behavior? There have been no significant changes in his setup I can blame it on. I'm beginning to think he's older than I first anticipated when I purchased him. Is this possibly a sign of old age? Thanks in advance.

 

[DWhatley]

There are several possibilities. We often see them become recluse for a period of time and then return to being social so we will hope this is the case. If Samwise is a male as your observations indicate, then recluse denning is not a normal sign of senescence. Most male octopuses (and females that survive a bit after brooding) will wonder aimlessly around the tank and be quite active the last week or two of their lives (sometimes longer in the case of the larger octos). O.defilippi (Roy's suggested ID - see if you can tell if the THIRD arm pair is longer and more robust than any of the other arms. Front arms of either suggested species will be the smallest) is a mud/sand dwelling animal and may instinctively bury. If this is the case, Samwise may be showing signs of adopting his new home. Most octos need time to learn to socialize and behavior during the first couple of weeks have to be discounted to disorientation. Most of mine have taken over a month (and sometimes several) before showing real signs of socialization. There is a slight possibility of sex misidentification and brooding behavior but this would not be my guess at this point.

 

[mucktopus]

If this is from the Caribbean then I'm with Roy- it would be Macrortripus defilippi, which made it into the news last week for being the Atlantic Mimic.

Check out Hanlon's paper for free on the following website:
http://www.biolbull.org/cgi/content/full/218/1/15