question about cuttlefish

[rc]

i see a lot of info on octo here which is very cool, but for a while i have been interested in trying a cuttlefish, can anyone offer info on how taking care of one compares to an octopus?

 

[Colin]

Hi rc welcoem to tonmo.com

Keeping a cuttle is very similar but depending on where you live getting a cuttle is like a quest for the holy grail. In the USA it will take some time but in the UK thet are freqently seen.

I firmly beleive that to do it properly you need a much bigger tank tank than an octopus tank and look for going to at least 50 gallons for bandensis and 200 gal for officinalis.

So, where do you live?

 

[joel_ang]

to TONMO.com rc!
Some people say that keeping cuttle is harder than keeping octos (not my case though).

FYI this is what a bandensis looks like, just in case you happen to see one in a LFS or something.

 

[rc]

i am in the U.S. east side of florida to be specific.
i have a 46g bow front tank which ive had sitting around for a while, i was thinking of using that for the cuttle, probably with an emperor 400 filter to start, (its what i have right now) and i would expand on the filtration would that be ok?

where would i start to look for a cuttle? a local shop has told me several times they can get one but never delivered, also im a little weary of buying one because of the things ive read, such as certain species being imported as adults and almost ready to die by the time you get them.

 

[Melissa]

Welcome to TONMO! I'm eager to see the photos when you get the tank set up and the ceph settled in!

Melissa

 

[Colin]

you've hit the nail on the head.. that is the problem!

Its really hard and not many people have managed to get what they want or the cuttlefish to survive transport. Made worse by the fact that there is no species of cuttles in the US

 

[rc]

i currently have a 55 reef which to everybodys amazement has a golden spotted moray in it which never bothers any fish, my coral banded shrimp climb all over it, and i have a tiny bi-color blenny which tends to hang around the eels home, its pretty cool.
it will be a little while until the 46 is set up and running again, i had an octo in there once upon a time, i didnt know much about them at the time but he was the coolest thing, he would spread out on the glass and would spend all day do amazing things with its color and texture, he eventually got out and i found him on the carpet.
im going to do my homework this time and be more meticulous with how set up the tank, im trying to find a cuttle but if i cant find one soon after the tank is ready i will get another octopus

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