Check it out:

http://www.thesciencesite.info/squidcam.shtml

The first thread, SQUIDCAM, has been closed so that we can move on to SQUIDCAM II. As a first post I've included a couple of images of one set of Sepioteuthis australis eggs that I collected several weeks ago, at a depth of 20 feet on Carpophyllum weed off a group of Islands in the Hauraki Gulf, here off Auckland, New Zealand.

Eggs of this species have proven to be extremely difficult to find this winter; strange things happening in our waters. This particular set of eggs is due to hatch in ~ 2 weeks. Another bunch collected about three weeks earlier are currently hatching.

These photos were taken by a dive buddy, Dr Iain Anderson, from another Auckland University, the 'University of Auckland' (just up the road from us). Iain has written a number of books over here, and is presently writing an article (for a popular magazine here) on our efforts to catch and ongrow these and other squid, and leaps at any opportunity to get out in the boat, have a dive and use his sensational camera equipment to get images. He's taken some dynamite shots of the hatching squid, but I'll not be able to post these for at least a week.

Spiffy... hope things go at least as well (if not way better) than last time....

Can't wait for the hatching pics! (The sound of tentacle clubs applauding)

Sclurp sclurp sclurp!

o...can't wait!

OOOOOOOOOoooooooooooooo!!!

Hi there;
We have 8 baby S .australis swimming happily this morn.
It seems a few of em have lanced themselves on our only piece of equipment thats inside the tank, the mesh covered overflow.
/Not sure where the squidcam will fit in an already crowded wetlab, but im sure everyone wants to see these cuties. :razz:

Here's a pic of the eggs that Steve O collected for me 2 weeks ago, in our tank system.
The nodes are now showing and developing nicely, should start to see eye spots in a fornight.

Looking good!

Hoping to watch how these wee ones develop.

Are there many changes to the rearing system?

This is really exciting! :grin:

When do you think the cam be up and running again?

AWESOME!!!

It seems the IT guys have gone in and set-up squidcam already.
The camera's operational but focussing in on these little fellas is a tad difficult.
Once all the hatchings have finished (around August 26) i'll put the lid on and apply the cloth around the tank to eliminate reflections, and hopefully make things a little clearer.

These hatchlings are from the small egg mass collected 5 weeks ago, so look at it as a teaser for the large mass developing in another tank.

Here's the link.

http://www.thesciencesite.info/squidcam.shtml

Happy Viewing :razz:

Awesome!!! Glad to see The Squid cam is up and running! Did I see tiny babies? Was wrestling for controls to zoom in on what I thought were the hatchlings towards the bottom.

I hope not, then that would be a sickly baby.

They are (or should) be near the surface.
The mysids ive added are probably what you were seeing.
They do occasionally come down in the water column to feed i think, let me know if you see any footage of this.
:grin:

Wow! I think I saw some. Do they look like tiny translucent biro lids with itty bitty arms?

That sounds like them, there are 11 in the tank at the moment. Fortunately ive seen them feeding now (was a concern earlier)

watching them eat is always fun. :grin:

Hey, who turned the lights off?

Here's my current view.

Thanks for that view.
One of our lamp bulbs decided to go to bulb heaven last night unfortunately.
Should be better viewing now.
:wink:

It's great to see this started back up again 8-)

--Carl
http://protask.nl.eu.org/~dennis/emoticons/div34.gif

bulb heaven never seemed to be cruel to me, until now. It just happened that I wanted to see it when it went out.

I've just returned; I can assure you that the little guys are in there (I've just returned from the lab to see them) - it's just that we've forgotten just how small that they are at this age (1 week), and how difficult they are to see (I've just tried and failed using the camera).

We'll change the backdrop to the old black card, because the camera wants to focus on the creases in the cloth rather than what's in the middle of the tank. Poor squidvicious has had a bit of a rough week ... tiz a stressful time, this early on. Things will look good very soon.

Wow, I'm really glad that it isn't just my lack of squidcam operating skill!

yeh, focusing really isn't great on a webcam.

They are there, I've seen them.

Just realised it's back, are you raising the same species Steve? Also, any ideas as to why it comes out in jap?

it's always been jap for me, and I think Steve O has mentioned that it's the same sort of squid.

Yep, its the same species. Sepioteuthis australis.
What do you mean by jap??

Yep, its the same species. Sepioteuthis australis.
What do you mean by jap??

I think he's referring to the fact that the controls come out labled in Japanese on some browsers/java platforms. They're in English on my linux laptop, but Japanese on my mac. I pointed this out to one of the webmaster types when sh*thead was still about.

You can definitely see them now; I've just been watching

He likes to watch.

Cool stuff, Herr Doktor !

greg

Righteo; I've done what I can with the lighting and backdrop for the day (have too much on to spend much more on it) - it's still very crappy, and there are some frustrating reflections in there (caused by overhead lighting that I cannot change), but it is much better than it was. There is just one in there at present, but over the next week we should be putting in many dozens, and possibly an egg mass (almost ready to explode a squillion babies). You can see him hanging around at the surface quite easily, although the lighting is so bad he looks like a white spot.

I think I see it. It looks just like a white spot. It's moving all the time. Thanks for sharing this, it's really thrilling.

Poor old squiddy looks like he's gettn lonely, but not to worry, he'll have at least 100 friends to play with in a week or so.
Can you see the little fella near the bottom?

Thanks to Steve, Kat and Gary, we may well have 1000 babies swimming around in one month. Check out this HUGE egg mass in our system.
Now all i need is 5000 mysids ready to fed the little guys on their arrival :wink:

where did the egg mass come from?

I got a great view, could make out the eyes and tenticles (very blurry but still individualised features) If I can get it again ill put up a screenshot.
He moves pretty fast but I was lucky enough to catch him at the top for a while.

This things awsome, but what are you gonna do with all those squid? can u just leave them in a massive group?

The eggs were collected in the same area as the first bunch on Carpophyllum weed off a group of Islands in the Hauraki Gulf, here off Auckland, New Zealand.

I will be doing some tank configuration testing with the squid, noting any behavioural changes.
Should we get 1000 healthy 1 month old babies, then we'll, have to find more tanks but we have enough tank space to accomodate for the little fella's up to this stage.
The egg masses will be separated according to the hatching times, because mixing cohorts would be dangerous and i would like to test "known" aged paralarva and juveniles seperately.

Got the little sod; he's certainly growing; a few more weeks and he should be a little easier to photograph.

We're having a few 'technical difficulties' here, as in a recent deluge has flooded some IT sort of room and has shorted out(?) a few cables (goes to show my ignorance when it comes to such matters); consequently the internet is down in the wetlab and a few other offices (this has nothing to do with squiddy!!).

Squiddy, by the way, is doing fine, and he has ~ 50 brothers and sisters in a separate tank, now nearly 2 weeks old, that we'll soon place in with him for company (as we're expecting ~1500 to hatch within two weeks, from separate egg masses, at which point in time we'll need a tremendous amount of tank space freed up). I forget how old squiddy is, though it must be nearly 4 weeks.

Things should be operational again shortly, hopefully today.

All's back to normal. Squidvicious (aka Jason) has a wee problem; too much success. Squiddy unfortunately remains a single squid, now 5 weeks old, but until we sort out exactly what Jason is going to do with his thesis (research) we'll keep the others separate from him (there are squid coming out of our ears at present). He's about to trial 3 different diets to see what happens. Having ironed out the earliest problems with squid culture, and with ~ 1000+ squid due to hatch, and ~ 60 others now ~ 2 weeks old, Jason will have to do something smartly and magical with tank facilities (and let many squid go).

Anyone in NZ want any squid?

Sadly, I do not live in NZ, but I'm coming...say...how big are the squids now? I can't see too well with the cam...

I put a further 5 in there this morning, because there'll be some pretty big news re squid in the not-too-distant future. It pays to have a few more in there in the event people tune in to watch a live animal.

......... until then my lips are sealed.

......... until then my lips are sealed.

Every good Steve O'Shea post seems to end with something like this...

The only other time Steve's lips are sealed was when he was doing a ND sing along in the middle of school.:lol:

(NO! I'm joking! Don't kill me!)

Hmmmmmm. Didn't realise we were in darkness there for a while.

Check the big squido out now:
http://www.thesciencesite.info/squidcam.shtml
It's (sex indet) 2 months old today (and the 4 smaller ones are over 1 month). It's growing rather fast now. Spent the afternoon in there taking b'day shots; got some sensational ones too (with a super-duper high-quality camera)

Hm..is it just me, or is Squidcam down for the week?

Yeah I noticed that too, it says its "loading the java applet" and doesnt seem to go anywhere.

Just now when it says "now with extra active squid" :cry:

ditto!

when I get bored, I go and make that squid on the squidcam button follow the mouse around.:oops:

Yeah, its up! I took this picture tonight. I got to watch this little guy/girl and the little shrimp swim past. He/she must not have been hungry because I saw about 15 shrimp swim right past.

Something 'really exciting' might happen in this tank next week, but only if everyone is really, really, really good - and that includes everyone around the world, across the universe, and in perpetuity even! Wouldn't that be nice!

Hmmmmm. That's a little unrealistic. New deal. If you read this, look left, hold your tongue to the right, tap your heels two times, think a good thought .... and just maybe 'presto' ... something interesting will happen to squiddy in squidcam .... Soon there may be spontaneous generation; many squiddies that have found themselves surplus to requirement. What am I talking about? Who knows; I don't; perhaps I've lost the plot.

Perhaps a turtle will appear, or even a shark; perhaps a submersible, or a sunken ship. Perhaps nothing will happen .... and then .... perhaps not.

Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps ......

...... perhaps not .......

errrr...

I think Dr Steve has been overcome by 'fumes'.

fumes from ND CDs burning in the corner...

so this is what being a research scientist does to you...

Perhaps a turtle will appear, or even a shark; perhaps a submersible, or a sunken ship. Perhaps nothing will happen .... and then .... perhaps not.

Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps ......

...... perhaps not .......

I think all that formalin he's absorbed has finally circulated up to his brain. A sad, sad moment for teuthiology.

Cheers!

It's next week...:rolleyes:

I don't see any more squid yet......

although the one already there has grown impressivly.

We (everyone at TONMO, at least), have been good all week... Is there something new in the tank? I can't really tell...

Sorry - last week is one I chose to forget! It'll happen this week, and soon.

Hope this week was better Steve, but I still don't see anything new on the SquidCam...

There's a tear in the black cloth thing and I can't see any squids!
Anyone seen the squids in the tank?

Yeah I have seen one - he's getting quite big now.

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b279/Feelers/squidcam.jpg
Took this just now. :grin: , he tends to hover at the top - often out of camera range. He does a weird backward/ forward action, kinda like a pendulum.

There's a tear in the black cloth thing and I can't see any squids!
Anyone seen the squids in the tank?

Oooops; will just go fix it now; thanks

I always wondered if you could see people walking around....
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b279/Feelers/steveo.jpg
haha, I saw a massive dark shape go past the camera while I was zoomed in - I was trying to figure out if there was a huge fish in there or something. :grin:

Is that Dr. Steve O'Shea there?

:tomato:

Feelers, that is so not fair!!! Over the years that we've had SQUIDCAM operating, not once has anyone captured me doing a feed or maintenance work on the camera/tank; you're the first! Maybe I could do a regular act?

Yup, Eric, me in person:smile:

Well, finally something interesting happened in the tank (that sole squid was looking a little lonely). Shortly I'll have to flood the SQUIDCAM tank with even more squid, as we clean out another tank here (there are quite a few squid here), but it will be a temporary solution.

The problem with the lighting in the tank has to be fixed, yet again; someone has flogged one of the covers that shields the light (as happens). I've also got to do a thorough clean in this tank as the walls are actually covered in algae (you can't see it through the lens, but it does make the tank look cloudy, and picture quality is reduced).

It'll look better in a week or so ......

.... got all 5

Nice catch Feelers!

Your fix are lookin' good Dr. Steve... what's your duration record for keeping squid at this point?

Forgotten, T; I cannot even remember what happened to the previous lot - I think there was an accident with concrete dust, or some such thing at some point in time.

Wow!!! That's a first! Someone catching Dr.O!!!!!:mrgreen:

hmmm... I said "your fix are looking good", I meant "your five are looking good..."

Shouldn't post after coming home from a neighborhood party...
:wine:

So whats the deal with keeping squid? After you have a large circular tank - what other special requirements are there?
Do you have a massive protein skimmer and chiller? I suppose getting appropriate food might be the biggest problem?

So whats the deal with keeping squid? After you have a large circular tank - what other special requirements are there?
Do you have a massive protein skimmer and chiller? I suppose getting appropriate food might be the biggest problem?

Just a cylindrical tank, protein skimmer (post 2 weeks; not when the paralarvae hatch), a spray bar (sets up a certain current), biofilter, and a TON of live food!

I'm going to say something that will make many cringe .... but these things have survived dandy-like in water that looks like tea!

They are so picky when it comes to their food, and you have to know what to feed them at different stages of the life cycle (their size); put the wrong prey species in and they'll either reject it (and starve), or be attacked by it (and eaten). They are completely disinterested in those fish species in the SQUIDCAM tank - they're in there mainly for company; they're eating one species of fish only, at present - and it's a 'freshwater' fish species that they absolutely love (Gambusia affinis).

It's very simple once you've stripped the system back to its absolute basics; it really is all about current, tank shape and food; anyone could do it.

Do you use current to blow them away from the wall or are they ok with that?
Does the circular tank just stop them getting wedged in the corner? From what I can see on squidcam they dont seem to crash into the walls.

It's very simple once you've stripped the system back to its absolute basics does that mean a giant squid might be on the cards sometime soon? :grin:
Oh yeah, I was thinking - what happens if your future archi gets too big ? Do you have a massive tank lined up?

Any waaaay of plans for a messie?

Everything boils down to money, or the lack thereof. If there's someone online who can fund an expedition then I'll sure go out and do it, and this time I'm pretty convinced that we'd do it too.

How much does an expidition cost? (out of interest) I suppose after you catch one funding will be easy to get. I would imagine it would be a dream for any aquarium to have one on display. A huge crowd puller.

You can put me down for $50 :grin:

How much does an expidition cost? (out of interest) I suppose after you catch one funding will be easy to get. I would imagine it would be a dream for any aquarium to have one on display. A huge crowd puller.

You can put me down for $50 :grin:

I'll not take your money, don't worry.

With an ROV capable of going to 1000m, and 20 days sea time aboard a substantial vessel, you're looking at ~ 980K NZ$. That's actually not a lot of money to raise, but it is very time consuming doing it, and rather disheartening - and time is not something I have a lot of these days.

'One day', when things free up and I've got my creativity back, I might look at it, but for now I'm quite happy busting foofoo on many other projects.

Are the gambusia collected or bred? Just curious about the risks of parasites as wild gambusia are what I target when I want to look at some spiny headed worm under a microscope. Many have a life cycle form that targets a snail or other mollusc.
Any chance of a parasite jumping when a squid eats an egg? Coz if there is I'd get rid of snails in your feeder breeding tanks.
:bugout:
heh heh
sorry.
Trying to work out if I can give an octopus parasites feeding it garden snails is doing my head in.
Not trying to spread da mindtrip around.... was actually only going to post that baby mollies would be easy on the eye but not sure what temps your dealing with there.
:angel:

Hmmm I wonder if garden snails would make good octo food? - (probably not - but interesting none the less.)
I think the tank is kept at roughly the same temp as NZ coastal water - so 10 - 13 centigrade (at a guess).

Are the gambusia collected or bred? Just curious about the risks of parasites as wild gambusia are what I target when I want to look at some spiny headed worm under a microscope. Many have a life cycle form that targets a snail or other mollusc.
Any chance of a parasite jumping when a squid eats an egg? Coz if there is I'd get rid of snails in your feeder breeding tanks.

:shock: Acanthocephala? In the intestinal walls? Oh dear; never considered this, especially if advocating using Gambusia as a bridging feed between mysids and larger/dead fish for potential commercial application. All Gambusia are wild caught at present (it's illegal to culture these things over here) - in fact we're dealing with stocks of everything, rather than cultures, as we lack the space and personnel resources to maintain mini-ecosystems.

Tell me something nice about acanthocephalans - like they are host specific and do not pose a threat to humans. That would be so nice to hear!!

Somhow, I know it's NOT gonna be host specific and do not pose a threat to humans...

I didn't see anything about humans but found mention of mammal hosts.
:shock:

On further search, some of them infest humans.

Ok Steve,

Something you don't want to see...

Prociv P, Walker J, Crompton LJ, Tristram SG. Med J Aust. 1990 Feb 19;152(4):215-6. First record of human acanthocephalan infections in Australia.

Two cases of asymptomatic acanthocephalan infections in infants are described. We believe this is the first report from Australia of infection with these parasites in humans. Their clinical, epidemiological and biological significance is discussed.

At least they were asymtomatic...

but remember, some of these cases don't get noticed.

I'm new here and can't pull myself away from the computer. There is so much information to absorb - I'm in heaven. Thanks Steve. I can't wait to see the babies!

ok, dumb question of the day -- did the squidlings hatch? Any pix? Also I'm wondering about Squidcam II -- is there an actual underwater camera available for squidwatching?

Check it out!
http://www.thesciencesite.info/squidcam.shtml

It's also on the first page of this thread...

is it just me or are the squid rather syncronized? when you watch them swim, they all move at once, and I was wondering if that's a behavioral thing.

Watching Squidcam this morning, but the focus was all wrong, it was focusing on the algae on the glass rather than the squid, redering Squidcam blurry.


Anyone noticed this problem or is it just me.

Oh dear; I am in Australia at present and cannot attend to it; I get back tomorrow and will try and fix the problem then. (someone must have knocked it)
Ta
Me

My computer's gone wonky and I can't see a thing on Squidcam, can anybody give me an update on it?

He's still going strong, but is being removed tomorrow for a few hours for a film shoot. It is nearing the end of its life now - there's not much squid left in him; maybe another 20 days ....

How big is it now? ...Oh, and what's the film shoot for?

...... and he died this morning, just PRIOR to the film shoot! This is an ABSOLUTE catastrophe!!!!

I don't know if I'll do this again; it's too much work.

I'm so sorry. I just checked in on the SquidCam last night and I thought I saw him jetting around... :sad:

Don't give up Dr. Steve! You and Squidcam are an inspiration to us all! I've personally learned a lot from Squidcam and I appreciate how much work goes into such an endeavor, but it's totally worth it from this end anyway. Please reconsider...

Cheers; we'll start from scratch again, SQUIDCAM III (new thread) before July 14, don't worry. Nighty