[Octopus]: Wink - Octopus Digueti

[QueenB]

I've had my Octopus about 2 weeks ago and have been chatting about her in a different part of the forum. To catch up on the action you can refer to this.

She has been shy since I stuck her in the RSM (36G). She stays in her den most of the time, but does come to the den entrance, and plays with the holes in the rock with her arms during the day or the night. With or without the Red Plexiglas on.

She takes small tiny pieces of thawed shrimp on a skewer. (she ate 5 pieces yesterday I think her appetite is growing) But she refuses Live Shore Shrimp on a stick and she won't catch the last one running around the tank. (there were 2 but one came up missing so she may have snacked on that one) She refused a Fiddler on a stick the first 3 times I tried it so I gave up on skewering them. I didn't want to waste them if she might take to them later on. I was hoping if she became more familiar she might start coming outside more and I could toss one inside.

I needed to remove the corals I had stuck in there because I didn't want to take any chances on them. So I thought I would feed her and keep her busy while I had my hands in the tank.

I snapped a few photos today and short video @ 1pm of her finally taking a live fiddler! It took her a few tries because the hole she is in I think is too small for her to maneuver around in with a large piece of food..

I helped a little by using the skewer to keep it from crawling back outside and I think she stunned it be cause it then stopped trying to get away. Hence the cool video under the photos. Photos taken with my Olympus E-600 (getting better I hope). Video was taken with my iPhone 4 since my E-600 doesn't do Video.







Notice the not so camera shy Shore Shore shrimp

Well I hesitated to post this until I pulled out the pieces of fiddler after she finished her meal. I'm glad I waited. The fiddler molted in the tank. She didn't eat it like I thought she was doing when I walked away to give her some privacy while she ate. I still think their too big for her to eat. I'm gonna try once more when she's actually exploring the tank more. But I think their either too big or she can't get through the shell.

Let me know your opinions as you can see the fiddler size and comparison from the photos and video.

 

[sedna]

Lovely little octo! Love catching up on your updates. I think "Isabella," who I had a while ago, was a dugetti. You could look up her journal for comparisons...

 

[DWhatley]

Why do you think it was fiddler molt? Octos will often liquify their meal and suck out the partially digested meat so you will often see the husk of a shelled animal. IME, the gills will not be eaten but would not remain with a molt. Usually, I do find fiddlers with the top shell separated from the body. The crab claws we feed to the larger animals are mostly in tact with a drill hole in the claw or separated only at the joint but the shells are left as empty husks, much like you would expect for a molt.

 

[QueenB]

I found a top and bottom shell and some legs(like a molt), and when I tried to give her another one that night, I found the first one digging a hole in the rock and substrate. My heart sunk, because I knew then that she didn't eat it. I put the one I had in my hand back, and grabbed the net for the first one I stuck in there.

I'm gonna try tonight again, because she refused her 2nd tiny piece of shrimp last night. Hoping she's hungry enough to try again. She enveloped the first one, and I could see her trying (which I thought was successful at the time) and I wanted to try to give her another one the next day. I hesitated to post it, because of my bad luck with the buffet table with her. (Shore shrimp & fiddlers) Glad I did, but posted my findings anyway.

I'll update again tonight. Thinking maybe to try a clam or oyster if I can find them small enough. Off to buy a few more fresh shrimp.

 

[DWhatley]

Mussels will be too hard for it to open but you can offer no the half shell. Oysters are pretty messy but clams are not too bad.

 

[QueenB]

Well the clam is definitely too big for her to get in her den. She was trying for quite a while and I couldn't stop laughing. She's definitely persistent! I opened the Oyster(it was definitely dead) and seen the slimy insides and said "NO WAY!" I was not putting that in the tank.

She only ate one tiny piece yesterday so I tried to give her another fiddler treat today. I checked each fiddler and found the smallest one of the bunch. I duct tapped my phone to the front of the tank and positioned it so I could video the whole meal because I didn't think she was going to eat this one and wanted to see for myself what she was actually doing. I was also starting my spring cleaning list and checking things off.

Just an FYI it does take them a LONG time to actually finish a WHOLE crab.

YES SHE FINISHED IT! I'm so excited! I'm trying to upload the video but it's very long. It took her over an hour to actually consume it and spit the rest out. I started the video after the first 15 min when she started to pull it inside. I'm also trying to edit out the sound because my Male African Grey was telling off my Female Goffin Cockatoo during the whole video. She was screaming so we would take her out (typical woman )

She's now on her 2nd fiddler! She's a hungry Girl! I did try a 3rd, but she spit it out and said "Nope I'm full!"

I swear with the first fiddler, I honestly thought she ate it because of finding the pieces of Shell and Legs...but when I tried the 2nd, I found the 1st digging at a hole on the front left side of the rock formation. (I'll include a photo of it later) Hence why I call it a molt because when I found it, it had all of her legs, both the top and the bottom shells, and the eyes still intact. ( I've been feeding her females so far) The Main piece of Rock I have in the center of the tank used to be in my RSM 250 some time ago and must still have had the black sand from the tank in the hole the fiddler was digging at. It's been in this tank for over a year and you can see the difference in the substrate.

I love the small round substrate in my RSM 130 (very eye appealing to me), & I love pure white sand. Black sand is also gorgeous. I had it in my RSM 250 but it is very easy to see pieces of debris and is a very HUGE pain to clean every little speck. So if it's not completely debris clear it doesn't look as good.

I will post the video once it's done Processing. It's quite long, but I can't believe how well it actually turned out on my iPhone! I was afraid it was going to be too dark to see inside her den, but when I played it back on my PC, the amazing detail! I love her arms and suckers!

 

[DWhatley]

You can leave the clam(s) in the tank if they are still alive. They will perform as minor clean up crew. I usually leave mine in a bucket of water overnight (and change the water at least once for aeration, they will suffocate easily when fully submerged) just to eliminate whatever yuck they brought with them. Place them where you can see them so that if they do die, they are easy to spot but they do not make a mess like other mussels and I have missed a few dieing without water quality problems (the serpent stars, thorny stars and bristle worms will clean them out pretty quickly in my tank. I have had several last for well over a year.

Here are a couple of videos of Maya (probably 1.5x the size of yours when you take into account girth but still quite small) discovering and relocating a clam to eat it on the tank wall.

 

[QueenB]

Still waiting on the video to finish. (48 min)

My apologies for the long video but I wanted one of a complete feeding so I knew if she ate it, how she ate it, and what she did when she was finished.

32:00 into the video Turbo (Mexican turbo snail) runs around the tank and goes in front of the lens. So does the not so camera shy Shore shrimp wiggling their tush and saying "I'm still here!"

36:20 she finally spits out the remains after her meal and pears out for another one. I gladly gave her a 2nd for her to eat right after I shut off the video. Didn't take her quit as long the 2nd time, and I was prepared for the remains with a net to catch it when she spit. (she's should be a basketball star cause it was nothing but net on the release!)

MUTE THE SOUND! Until I can get the music to kick in all you will hear is us talking a little, tank sounds (mainly the skimmer), and my birds. THEY ARE LOUD!

44:00 is the best part of the video. One of the blue legs peering in and she tries to flick it off like a fly.

Again I will say I got quite lucky with this particular piece of LR. Both my Octos loved this as a den. Hoping she explores more, but satisfied that again she chose the top middle piece that I can actually observe her.

 

[QueenB]

I think I'm gonna name her Wink because she seems to wiggle her eye at me when I look in at her and she's hungry.

 

[DWhatley]

I love the fantasy snail like critters that seem to appear about half way (26 min ish). If you use a little imagination, you can see two trios of suckers looking like two pairs of eyes with mouths carrying on a conversation.

 

[QueenB]

Thanks for changing the title! (I'm clueless at this technical blogging journal stuff, but getting better)

I love watching her arms exploring and her suckers! (claps like a school girl getting an afternoon snack)

She has been playing with the holes in that piece of LR all night. She refused a small piece of shrimp so I don't think its hunger just curiosity. I'm gonna try and back off a good bit. I think I might be scaring her to staying in there. My face is glued to the glass as soon as I see movement.

She just sits in the front of her den looking out.I have started keeping the lights our the past few nights as well. She came halfway out with the lights on and she also did it with red, so I'm still kind of stumped.


There are about 8-10 Blue legs in there to help clean up what I cannot reach or see. I try to get out every piece I can, and she does her cloud wave of color but I try not to get close to her. I found a neat trick with the 2nd fiddler that if I stick it in a Dasani water bottle and fill the bottle with tank water and let it slowly enter her den, she snatches it right up. She really doesn't like the skewer because he grabs it out of my hand each time I feed her shrimp from it. I also take the bottle after she is done, and squeeze out a bit of water to use the bottle as a suction device to grab the pieces just out of my reach. (I'm a short woman)

Husband came in from walking the dogs as I was suctioning the 2nd crab up and he had the look like "What in the world are you doing?" I showed him and he was like ah cool idea.. lol

My Husband wants me to empty out the IM 38G that I put all the fish and corals in and get another one already. lol I told him "Patience my young Padewan Patience"

 

[DWhatley]

Don't feel technically challenged about not figuring out how to change the title, you can't. Title change is an oddity (I am sure there is a reason, I just cannot fathom it) of the software permissions or permission groupings and can only be changed by staff member.

Big to the spouse really enjoying the ceph

Can the octopus see the other tank? There have been a few cues that suggest octos seem to be more active when being able to view other sea life. I do think the fact that I had no aggression from my female O. briareus toward her male sibling when I put them together to mate (supervised visitation, not cohabitation) was because they could see each other as they grew up. We have also seen male and female animals "dance" at the same time each night even when they were not the same species. There has not been apparent aggression (they can't "smell" each other since the tank water is not shared) in that we did not detect color changes or aggravated skin manipulations. It may be that even visuals of fish (at a distance) may stimulate/enrich, especially after they are comfortable with aggressors never invading their space. This is all conjecture but animals I have kept in my more isolated tanks have typically been less interactive/active and I no longer use those tanks for octopuses.

 

[QueenB]

No the IM 38 tank is in the next room blocked by a half wall. She couldn't see it unless I moved her or the other tank and I don't plan on moving either until this summer maybe when we decide to do our floors. Trying to compromise on which wood floor to get.

My Barnacle finally came in today, and it looks so perfect for the tank. It does smell nasty and I am very curious how to clean it and prepare it instead of just plopping it in the tank. I'm surprised there is no glue holding this thing together. Hoping no chemicals cause that's what the ad said.

Barnacle Cluster

 

[QueenB]

 

[DWhatley]

Looks good. The smell is likely a good thing (assuming it is the smell of the ocean and not a glue smell - does not look glued). You need to treat it like live rock and cure it in saltwater until you see no ammonia or nitrite in the water.