Ziggy - Macropus ?

Teacher Kim

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Need Help in identifying new octopus

We just got this octopus 4 days ago and now have a couple of pics to share to see if anyone can help identify it. Sorry the pics aren't better, but I think they show enough detail to at least rule out some species! :smile:

Here is what I know about it: It was shipped from New York. Supplier said it was from Indonesia and more colorful and outgoing than others he usually gets. It's about 8 inches long with maybe a 2+ inch mantle. Legs are long and stringy, maybe 6 inches or longer depending on if it's stretched out. I noticed that its mantle seems to be shaped like a cone often.

It came out in the early morning after it was placed in tank the night before. I watched as it explored tank and even flattened out and turned the color of the sand. Then it changed back to a darker brown with a reddish tint and kept exploring. When I lift rock it is under it is a medium color brown with bright green splotches all over it.

It actually came out and climbed on my hand once. I noticed this morning that it had eaten a hermit crab last night at some point! Yay!!! I realize it is probably "older", however the supplier said he thought it would grow to about 22 inches. Am wondering what species it might be, how old it might be and if there is any way to guess the sex of it. Also, once I get an idea of species, am interested in suggestions for more permanent tank size, shape, etc...
 

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May I just say that this is THE coolest classroom EVER!!! :cool2: I love how in the second picture, none of the children seem even remotely interested in the fact that there is an OCTOPUS being dangled about their heads! (I'm sure it was just the timing of the photo).
Looking forward to seeing more pictures Kim! :smile:
 
Thanks! We do have a lot of fun! Funny, I noticed the kids lack of interest after posting that pic! They had already had their fill of looking at an octopus by the time we took this pic. Haha!
 
Kids have the attention span of ... well an octopus :biggrin2: The "cone head" look is one we see from a lot of species and often involves a "skunk streak" of white or brown down the middle of the "cone" I don't know of an agreed upon interpretation but I suspect it is one of aggravation.

Not lifting rocks to find it is a good idea. They need to be secure that they can hide so leaving them alone in their dens is advised. Interesting animal but I have no good guess for species. I do suspect something in the Macropus complex though, based upon it color and long arms. This would make it a nocturnal and animal so you may not see much of it during the day.

As for identifying the sex, we have no distinct markings for females but the third arm to the right (clockwise as you orient your eyes with the octopuses) will often be curled. This specialized arm will have a suckerless tip and a channel (not always easy to see) to deliver spermatophores to the female. You may also notice several enlarged suckers near the body on any of the front four arms.
 
Thanks for your input. I won't bother the den any more! :smile: So far you are right about it only coming out at night. It comes out in evening and is out all night. I swear that last night it was watching the TV! LOL I am going to try and get better pics soon. I haven't used a flash because I don't want to upset it. Is that correct? Some of the pictures on this site are so good! By the way, it has eaten 2 hermit crabs! Was worried that it might not eat. Oh yes, it now has a name... Ziggy! My foreign exchange student from Austria named it!
 
More pics to help maybe identify! Also, it was out in middle of night of course, but stayed out until close to 8:30 am even with children watching it! So cool!!
 

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O.K. Well, maybe you can access the above pic. or maybe not! Lets try another one!
 

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Sorry, I know there's a way to do all the pics at the same time, but last time I tried I wound up with three pics of the same thing! This is the last pic I have that I think might give someone a clue as to what it is. Also, someone noticed that in a pic it looked like the front legs are thicker and longer than the others and that is definitely correct!
 

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Great looking Octo! I'm pretty baffled as to IDing it. it looks like it has false Eyespots (ocellus) in the picture with the toy blocks, very interesting. Curious to see what D thinks....
 
Yes, I have noticed what looks like it might be eye spots, but I haven't seen any real coloration in them. They are hard to see. Also, as I said before, the two front tenticles are thicker and longer than the rest. I think it's a female, but not sure. If it's a female and was caught recently, does it look old enough to have mated? For some reason I'm really worried about that! I would hate to see fertile eggs or hatchlings die because of my lack of experience! Agh!
 
I will make a guess that it is Octopus aspilosomatis (now officially Callistoctopus aspilosomatis ). From Mark Norman's Cephalopods A World Guide page 244:
Common name: Plain-body Night Octopus.
Body size to 8 cm
Arms to 35 cm

This octopus appears restritced to the intertidal rubble and coral reef flats along the length of the Great Barrier Reef. It occurs on the adjacent Queensland coast towards the northern end. It emerges at night during low tides to forage for crabs and shrimip in shallow pools using the long thin arms to probe down crevices and burrows. Cannibalism has been observed where larger individuals readily catch and devour smaller animals of the same species. This species gets its scientific name from the absence of white spots on the body (aspilo = plain, somatis = body) compared with related speciesw such as Octopus macropus which have prominent white spots on the body. This species lays numerous small eggs so that hatchlings are likely to be planktonic.

Note that there is no mention of an ocellus but I am not sure that is what we are seeing in the photo. If you continue to see it and can verify that the possible eye spot is in paired, then my guess goes out the window.

I would guess she is old enough to have mated. Your lack of knowledge about caring for hachlings will not be a factor as we have not been successful keepin the planktonic at birth animals alive. She will brood eggs, fertile or not and seeing the little hatchlings may be exciting (it is for the adults) even knowing that they will not survive.

While looking for on-line pictures, I found this study the may be of interest:
Effects of environmental enrichment on the behavior of the tropical octopus Callistoctopus aspilosomatis

Unfortunately, only the abstract is available for free. However, HighBeam has a 7 day free trial and includes access if you want to jump through the hoops to read it.
 

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