[Octopus]: Itza - Octopus maya

I change everything every time I clean the tank and Itza doesn’t seem to mind, I feel like she is very curious to see what’s new, she was very friendly today that I cleaned the tank so I am starting to learn to play with her and not freak out, maybe it’s because she has never been in a natural environment, but I can leave the tank empty but for her favorite hiding place and she doesn’t seem to mind, is like she loves exploring the bare tank and new places ...and for example she really freaks out when strangers get close to the tank (moves suddenly inside and gets full black) but me cleaning is not an issue for her, I have a new more natural lay out this month, with an oyster I bought in the supermarket one month ago and was in the sump, It’s less colorful but I will see how she likes it, also she is not growing as fast as she should so maybe as a pet she will be smaller as her farm living siblings which is great because maybe she can live longer and in a smaller tank, since I am trying to launch octopus maya as a pet this can be great... time will tell...


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I bought live rock today and they have red stars, I bought two, I read here that the stars are good tank mates for octopuses but the guy at the fish store told me that the octopus will eat the star, I rather ask you guys... is the star a good tank mate for Itza?
I will put them in the sump until I read your answer
Here is a picture of the stars:

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In general, octopuses leave Echinoderms (starfish, serpent stars, urchins and cucumbers) alone but there are a few stars that can be aggressive and attempt to trap an octo. To my knowledge, the only ones of concern we see at pet stores are the green serpent star and the Bahama star. However, starfish are very hard to keep and most aquariums will not have a proper food source. Serpent/brittle stars are less picky about what they eat and will often accept pieces of food from your hand. They will, however, attempt to eat octopus eggs and create a challenge for brooding octopuses to protect their eggs. I worry that these need food from a more mature substrate and may not survive so be sure to keep an eye on them and remove them if they start to disintegrate.
 
Thank you for all your input, I’m so glad to have this forum for support and information. Itza and the orange little star are getting along just great! The star is in movement all the time which is quite entertaining for me, also I can feed Itza more an leave uneaten pellets and later they are gone, so I guess the star gets the left overs? I hope so... here a picture of the orange star looking for food in Itza’s today den and Itza didn’t mind at all ⭐
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Itza is not eating since yesterday ... she takes the pellets and “spit” them back to me ...is this normal? Water is fine, she seems happy and playful as always but she doesn’t want food
Also her “ocelo” is very noticeable now, the maya is also known as the 4 eyes octopus because of this

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Not eating is not a good sign. Showing her eyespot a lot also worries me but we have not had a journalled maya. In O.bimaculoides @Nancy has mentioned that they show their eyespot when they eat or are excited. With O. hummelincki I find they rarely show theirs unless they are upset. I would do a large water change just in case she has inked when you were not there and because you do not have very much biological filtration and she is growing. I would also offer a piece of thawed table shrimp to see if she needs larger food as this is what they would do in nature.
 
Thank you DWhatley I also asked Dr. Rosas who is the lead researcher in Sisal ... he gave me the same advice about the water and also told me this: We must remember that octopuses consume food according to the phases of growth: hyperplasia and hyperopia...(not sure about the translation) when they are in hyperplasia they stop eating for several days, Itza is 4 months old so it’s very likely that she’s is in a hyperplasia phase.
I will do a water change and try other foods and let you know how it goes.
 
Thank you DWhatley I also asked Dr. Rosas who is the lead researcher in Sisal ... he gave me the same advice about the water and also told me this: We must remember that octopuses consume food according to the phases of growth: hyperplasia and hyperopia...(not sure about the translation) when they are in hyperplasia they stop eating for several days, Itza is 4 months old so it’s very likely that she’s is in a hyperplasia phase.
I will do a water change and try other foods and let you know how it goes.


I’m so glad the scavenger hunt led me here. This is fascinating info!
 
octopuses consume food according to the phases of growth: hyperplasia and hyperopia...(not sure about the translation) when they are in hyperplasia they stop eating for several days,
I was not aware of a stop eating phase but the transition in rate of growth is familiar. They also start eating larger foods at this new stage, which is why I suggested trying shrimp.
 
Good advice, and you might consider offering some small live food to her as well. Very small crabs or live shrimp. It.’s a form of enrichment for an octopus to hunt food.

Nancy
 

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