Octoguard - O. Mercatoris

 

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We see basically two forms of ink. One is very thin, a challenge to remove and a keep is thankful for the help of a skimmer. The other is a very viscous blobby excretion that easily sticks to a fine net, often referred to as a pseudomorph and is thought to be released to confuse predators between the ink and the real animal. Most of my animals have inked at one time or another. I have had a couple to ink in shipment (they don't make it) but the worst was Octavia. She inked over and over and completely blackened her tank. I suspect her own ink made breathing difficult and resulted in the near catastrophy. Fortunately, we were in the room (no clue why she inked to begin with there was nothing unusual happening in the room) when she started, I had a second tank available and placed he in fresh tank water as soon as she appeared to stop. I thought I was going to lose her very soon after that but she lived on for several months.
 
LOL, I looked down at the pic and said, wait, that's not a merc. Tranny needs his own Journal :sagrin: or we will start mixing up comments. If you start a new journal I will move the pictures and my comments.

Edit: remaining comments moved to Tranny's thread
 
Tank inking is almost never a major problem as it mostly occurs because of something you do, not when they are alone. With all the animals we have journaled, I only know of one other (O. vulgaris) that inked a tank to the point of making it uninhabitable. You DO want to do a water change as the ink can coat their gills (the problem with inking during shipment) and if you don't have a skimmer on the large tank, I would suggest thinking seriously about acquiring one. I did not keep a skimmer on the small merc tank I had for years. My "little guy" tank now has one as did the larger tank I raised 3 other mercs in but they are not as big a waste problem as the larger animals.
 
LOL, jury is still out on Octoguard. The arm showed curled is not in the correct position. It was Tranny that gave a clear indication (third arm on the RIGHT as you orient your eyes with the octos eyes).
 
Of note, there have been cases where the hectocotylus is on the left side (not sure which species has been noted). It is rarely seen but we don't really have enough observation to say it is "rare".
 
I do have protien skimmers on both tanks. I was told to have them not even for the ink but for oxygen in the water. I did my water changes on both tanks. my water is very good. I use only RODI water and it tests at 0 tds. I have been keeping reef tanks for many years so i understand water quality. I have to move my 29bio cube out of the bed room to make room for octoguards tank at home. Then I can see him at night.
 
Update. Octoguard found a barnicle today. I was really happy and yes dwatley about 1/3rd up the tank is the barnicle that he choose. I didnt get a chance to try to feed him today with my feeding stick but tomorrow I will. He does eat hermits but the last few days he has not eaten much. I will get a pic of him in his new home tomorrow.
 
Oddly, this is the only species that gravitates to this kind of shell on a consistent basis. It is particularly odd in that the shell is not native to FL but is actually from the Pacific (yes, all those you see in the FL novelty and pet stores are from somewhere else.:roll:). It has been my observation that all other species prefer dens with multiple openings but we have seen a few break this thinking.
 

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