paradise pet shop eggs

[rryyddeerr]

is paradise pets still open?? ive sent them multiple emails and called but had no response. :neutral:

[CaptFish]

I ordered from them once and had a very hard time with communication. I sent a bunch of emails and never heard back either. I wanted to know when they were sending the cuttle eggs i had ordered so I could make sure I was home when they arrived, well two weeks went by and I came home to a package on my door step. When I picked it up it was 100 degrees from baking in the sun all day. needless to say the eggs never hatched.

[rryyddeerr]

not encouraging. thanks for the info.

[rryyddeerr]

Just got off the phone with paradise pets, confirmed my order and learned that they just got a shipment of eggs that they will be shipping this week. Fingers crossed

[Reef Geek]

How'd this shipment go?

[rryyddeerr]

Haven't seen it.

[rryyddeerr]

talked to the proprietor of PPS a couple days ago. he promised me cuttles. he said he would make up for the fact that ive been waiting. he delivered.http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=641043732#!/photo.php?pid=1126441&id=1553479260&fbid=1459565019794

[SabrinaR]

Awesome. Glad it worked out for you.

[rryyddeerr]

hmm. weird. i tried to post a pic of the 10 eggs he sent me for the price of 5, but it didnt work. honestly, they're almost the size of my big toe.

[CaptFish]

honestly, they're almost the size of my big toe.

:shock: I hope you are a tiny person(J/K), if not it does not sound like those are S.Bandensis.

[rryyddeerr]

no exageration: 5/8"

[DWhatley]

The photo is likely blocked for permissions as I cannot view it using the properties URL. Try allowing anyone to see this photo album on FB or just upload the picture directly here using the insert image icon to guide you through the upload.

Are the eggs WHITE by chance? Are the round or oblong?

[rryyddeerr]

blackish grey, molting their exterior coating.

[DWhatley]

Well, they are not squid eggs, not broadclub or Metasepia pfefferi(two of the possibilities if they were White discovered when Paradox got a large white one). Can you see any movement in the eggs yet?

[rryyddeerr]

Yes. There seems to be some repetative movement followed by a loud thunk. I can't tell, but it looks like there are a set of dumbells and a blender?
:lol:

[DWhatley]

Are you hearing a thunk like the movement causes one of the eggs to hit the side of the container or just being ... funny. If you are seeing actual movement can you catch it on video by underlighting the eggs?

[rryyddeerr]

yes, ma'am. funny, it is.

*stoically hovering over cuttle tank with cam-corder, awaiting movement*

as soon as i get some good intel onl these lil boogers ill post something up.

[rryyddeerr]

wait. what the heck are you doing on here at 4 in the morning???

[DWhatley]

I keep strange hours :wink:

[cuttlegirl]

Well, it is a possibility that those are S. officinalis eggs - how big is your tank?

[rryyddeerr]

shaZAM!!:cool:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFVUlk-LqgU

[rryyddeerr]

just realized there is a worm tangled up in the knot at the center of this egg group. think this thing could be predatory and waiting for a hatch? if so, to what lengths should i go to procure him?

[rryyddeerr]

Well, it is a possibility that those are S. officinalis eggs - how big is your tank?

please tell me they are not. they are in a modest little 45.

:grin: did order a 180 yesterday
:neutral: but thats for my fish.:roll:

[SabrinaR]

Holy momma those suckers get big... Maybe you can set up your modest 45 for the fish and the 180 for the cuttles? That would rock I do have to say... I would love to have a tank full of large cuttles.

I wonder how many you can keep in the 180 with out a problem though.

[rryyddeerr]

none. my significant other is splitting the cost of the tank with me with the understanding that it is for the fish

[rryyddeerr]

first cuttle from the new batch has hatched and is about twice the size of the one i already have. its a bandensis, though.

[cuttlegirl]

The eggs do inflate as they mature, but how do you know that they are bandensis? S. officinalis hatchlings are about 0.5 inches or a little larger.

[DWhatley]

hooo boy, that would be both terrifically interesting and terrifying all in the same breath. If this turns out to be the case, I remember Paradox wanting one but I don't remember if the tank he built out was large enought (I remember he was going to house the broadclub with Thales if it got too big, unfortunately it did not make it). It seems we are seeing a lot of unexpectedly large animals this year. Both a fun and curious set of events.

[DWhatley]

Warning! Warning! Danger, Will Robinson,


and is about twice the size of the one i already have

I would suggest PMing Thales and asking him about the possibility of extra large bendensis hatchlings as he has seen the most diversity.

[rryyddeerr]

Now, when I say twice as large, I'm not talking length. I'm talking size. It's prolly just over a quarter inch long, but really fat. Much girthier than #1, who was very small.

[cuttlegirl]

:grin: That's good to hear - at a quarter inch, they're not officinalis...

[SabrinaR]

VERY GOOD! How many of these type of cuttles can be kept in your 45? Pictures?

[rryyddeerr]

I'm sure it depends on the personalities of the cuttles in question, but I am going to rear up and find homes for all but one male and a pair of females. I also have a coulpe smaller tanks ready to isolate troublesome indeviduals if they become a problem.

[DWhatley]

hummmm, I smell a tank upgrade :gigas:

[snowmaker]

I gave a pair of supposed males to a friend. A week later he found eggs. a week or so later, one killed the other fighting provoked by feeding. They were in a 30g cube. I have broken up a couple fights started over food. ATM, I am feeding my pair nearly as much as they'll eat. They seem more satisfied, and tolerant (of each other) and no longer beg when I am near the tank, as they did (female mostly) when feeding frozen krill. The female wants more food than the male.
When I had more than the pair, serious fighting started at around 5 mos. old although there were squabbles much earlier.
I thought all this worth mentioning for keeping more than 1 in a smallish tank.

[rryyddeerr]

thanks guys. duly noted. ive actually got my sump prepared to take on and accommodate a lot more water/waste, so another tank wont be much more of an issue than setting one down, plumbing it in and filling it with water.

very gracefully put, by the way.

[Stavros]

A couple of questions regarding optimal tank space and number of bandensis kept together (I'm posting here to avoid having a new thread, let me know if this needs to be moved).

According to experts, 1 animal can be kept in a 30 gallon tank. 2 in a 45 gallon and so on. These volumes probably refer to standard type of tanks sold at pet shops. What about custom systems with different dimensions but same volume? Should we consider length x height x depth rather than volume itself?

[rryyddeerr]

thats a good thing to consider, as ive read somewhere that cuttles prefer a taller water column vs. greater volume alone.

[DWhatley]

Rich (Thales) probably has some thoughts on this but you might PM him with a link to the discussion to be sure he sees it.

[snowmaker]

I started w/ 5 in a 40g breeder. By month 5, the displaying, squabbles turned fighting began to get a bit violent. I immediately gave away 3 and kept the breeding pair. Even these two will fight over food if I feed less. If I feed more they appear much more tolerant of each other.
With the 5 in the tank, I saw fights break out over territory, food, and once saw a pair mating when a 3rd one came to within about 8" of the mating pair and was attacked by the male.

rryyddeerr, do you still want a few more eggs since you got these?

[rryyddeerr]

im going to hold off for now. he sent me 10 eggs instead of 5. i have to wait to see if/how many hatch. the two i have are doing well, so I know there will be enough to "fill" the tank eventually. id love to luck out with a male and female.

thanks for asking. you still pumping out grapes?

[snowmaker]

...as we speak. :mrgreen:

Just having the pair is much easier keeping them well fed. Too many little babies though... is much more effort.

[Stavros]

@dwhatley: thanks for the reference

Sooner or later will be getting bandensis eggs, but I prefer to get them locally to be able to inspect them first. The only place I have found near NY area is

http://www.nyaquatic.com/servlet/the-829/Cuttlefish-Eggs/Detail

Sent them a couple of emails and they promptly responded: they don't know the species and they get them every 2-3 months.

So that's not an excellent choice for now, but who knows, it might end up as a cephalopod kinder surprise.

[cuttlefishie]

Anyone have any eggs?

[rryyddeerr]

have you got your tank set up already? :razz:

snowmaker has the super-fertile cuttles these days. you could pm him and see what he says.