[Octopus]: o. Vulgaris, we named him Trevor

Octos usually leave echinoderms (starfish and the like as well as urchins) alone (there was one recent finding of starfish in the stomach of an octo but I can't remember the species). There have been a few anecdotal incidents that suggest Bahama stars and possibly large green serpents may trap small octos and kill them (it is not known if the animal died first but the stars were found eating a denned octo). We typically recommend staying away from sharp pointy things (like rock urchins) more because octos don't go around things, they crawl over them and scrapes and holes can lead to infections that are very difficult to treat. I have no experience with the Chaeto in an octo tank. I have put it in with a net with baby cuttles but I don't like the stuff in a display because it breaks apart and makes a mess after awhile, others love it.

After super, I will see what direct info I can find you on the red lighting. I think we have an article or two but I have used it for so long I fail to remember the location of the initial write-ups on light color sensitivity. Not sure why anyone would recommend blue as it is not particularly good for most nocturnals for the same reason. I suspect it is more a human observation preference rather than a comfort for animals. If you have a reference for the post on red, I would like to read the source (on topic links are always permitted).

Sorry if I over explain but the experience levels of our members range from people with PhD's in the field (we are hoping to have a panel discussion at TONMOCON VI broadly topiced something like, "What do you do after your ceph degree?") to people who have never had an aquarium so how much is too much is sometimes hard to guess, it is never meant to be insulting.
 
Oh I hope I didn't sound insulted, I was trying to be light. What I meant was, it's not something we can build in our SLEEP exactly but a Sump is something we understand the basics of, and have fun making. The Wife likes the Display Refugium idea so that's how we've always gone about it.
For another two days tops, Trevor is going to be getting vac'd and water change outs to keep him Springtime Fresh. Once his tank gets here then he's going to have a 55g overhead refugium for quite a little while... should help fix THAT messy little squishy wagon of his.
Yeah, having a couple of degrees helps me not at all on The Cephalopod Front. LOL
I don't recall anyone recommending blue lighting to me. We had Simon's tank moonlit when Trevor was in it for a few hours, but it was only a few hours, nobody liked Trevor there so we moved him to the 36g on his first night. It has a light sitting over the corner, on one side, it's just a Betta light (incandescent) but it's not very GOOD, it's terribly old, lights up things very dimly. The bulb will go out and then I'll have to shop some more, but for now it's lighting that can't possibly offend anyone. At least we can't imagine how. We'll be finding out, maybe this evening.
 
This little set of Marineland LED's is a bit cumbersome to situate (mine are not set inside the tank and I don't use the bubbler) but it is meant to be in the water so it is well sealed, gives off a decent red night light and is very reasonably priced. Blue lights won't hurt them so actinics or moon light are fine for daytime but the thought is that with their eyes, blue at night could actually be as bright or brighter than sunlight and upset their night activity/sleep. As a side note, octopuses do not NEED any tank lighting (unlike corals and some fish) but daylight is not harmful and helps humans see the tank better.

I have always wanted to do a top overflow fuge but gave up on having to clean a well lit sump :oops: I have looked at a few designs but the style I would like to build/buy would not work well with a octoproofing an octopus tank and my small tanks would not fit one (and I REALLY don't need another tank to clean!!!).

My search (still looking for something scientific and definitive, lots of off the cuff references to not seeing red light but not quite what I am looking for) for the reason red is like no light and blue like daylight I am rabbit trailing far too much :biggrin2:. This hop does not address the difference but was a fun read (cuttlefish is the last of the human vs animal images) .
 
I had to work hard for this one and still need a red light reference. The one paper I did find (oddly it was given as a footnote reference for cephs not seeing red but does not even test the red spectrum) is testing done for Sepia Officinalis (giant cuttlefish - shallow water ceph). It was a find just the same as it shows the blue light sensitivity that @Neogonodactylus has mentioned in prior posts. Here is the resulting post I made in the Biology forum that quotes the blue sensitivity wave lengths and links a color chart for those of us who know enough about white light to translate ROY G BIV but have no clue to the nano meters for each color. This is only on one ceph and it is not an octopus but is a start on documenting one of those "known" facts that no one can find a source for the "common" knowledge.
 
I have this bad habit of rabbit trailing when I am trying to find specific information but you might find this paper interesting as it is a study on O. vulgaris' foraging times. I mentioned that it was considered nocturnal but new reports (and reports in captivity) has expressed activity at all times of the day and night. This paper addresses the differences in observations.

Also, most embarrassingly, I failed to mention the list of scientific papers on the species that may also be of interest, found here.
 
I've been worrying too much over this. Needing to concentrate, we've decided on doing nothing whatsoever regarding lighting, pictures, videos, et cetera. This is supposed to be about the Octopus, not about how good a look people on the Internet get at the Octopus. :smile:

So. In that spirit, we'll blog and might occasionally come up with an idea for a picture or a video of him eating or something. But we put the cameras away for now. NO plans to break them back out in the immediately immediate. :smile:
 
He is STILL out, it's two thirty in the afternoon and he wants to play. I fed him some Krill, he tugged on me a LOT and then took it and ate half of it, now he's just out. He's up top mostly, on the sides of the Box, just scooting around acting like a cartoon thing instead of an aquatic pet. I GOT SOME PICS. No flash, turned off the lights in the living room and kitchen, there is STILL too much glare on the tank's glass but I got some really GOOD pics.
TrevorPerchBest.jpg TrevorPerchBest2.jpg TrevorPerchBest4.jpg TrevorPerchBest3.jpg
 
It was a matter of "How much is this going to seem to hassle Trevor". But he's out. He's actually STILL out, it's been all afternoon. He's been playing around, and right now he's sitting against the wall of his Box all flattened like someone squashed him there and left him. I have played with him today, fed him, cleaned his Box, and he STILL won't hide today. So, I took pics. That didn't bother him either.
Tomorrow's another day; maybe this is a new Trend on his part but we're doubting it
 
I forgot to feed the animals last night. I'm ill. We're working on THAT, so it's all very good. Point. She doesn't know how to feed Trevor.
So this morning at daybreak I jumped out of bed feeling like I'd never slept before in my life. Watched the Sun come up like usual, but I am thinking about things clearer. Remembering Trevor, I strolled over to his tanks thinking all kinds of things and sure enough he heard me.
Came RIGHT out, one end of the wall to the other, colors kind of faded back and forth slowly really, from his usual amberish brown to whitish greyish blueish color. Can't call it flashing. Anyway, when I opened his door and reached in with a Hermit, Trevor wasted no time, didn't want to play, took the shell away from me without ceremony and disappeared.
So I guess now I know what he's like when he's hungry and ticked off.
 
You might try larger portions of food, there is not a lot of meat in a hermit. Seafood counter (or frozen food section - pretty much the same any more) table shrimp are easily accepted by the larger species. Start with a piece of shrimp about eye sized (for this species, even mantle size might be readily accepted) and work up to a whole small shrimp. LittleBit was the only octopus species I have kept that ate everything in her tank (except the brittle stars and urchin), all other species allowed for some kind of cleanup crew to survive.
 
Oh he usually gets other things. Yes, larger bits. I remove his leavings, in fact, most of the time. No he is getting a nice diet. I can't believe that all I've ever mentioned feeding him are Hermits. haha
We place his repasts inside of a small amber colored glass vial with not much of a fastened cap. He's had that for some time, is also getting a Habitrail setup to play in.
Getting his 55g going as of last night, enjoying the stages of setting up a new Tank very much. His FEEDING BOX is what I'll be setting up first. Can't wait for that.
 

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