[Octopus]: DaVinci - O. hummelincki

[Teacher Kim]

Agh!!!

 

[DWhatley]

I don't use my (low tech) phone for video so I am not aware of phone settings. What I can see is that the quality of the video is different and is likely a setting on the phone or upload. Click on the video. At the bottom you will see a gear. Placing your cursor over the gear allows you to select a quality (which has to do with how large the file will be when you watch it and available for selection because of varying download speeds). The second video only has the lowest quality (smallest download) available as an option. This will be a function of how you recorded it or how you uploaded it. Since there is also a visual size (width) difference, I suspect it is in the recording.

 

[spinycheek]

That is an awesome little octopus! Coolest teacher ever! I am now contemplating revising my plans to make an octo tank instead of a coral tank...

That's great aquacon worked out for you, I had ordered from them back in 2004 without any issues, and seeing that you had success, maybe it really was just a window of bad service around 2008-ish.

 

[Teacher Kim]

I'm hoping that other people have the same luck as I did with aquacon. Yea, reef tank or octo tank.... hard to choose! I know, that's why I have both! A lot of work though! Thanks for the "cool teacher" comment! I appreciate it!!

Things are getting kind of funny around here now! DaVinci is pretty used to everyone and sits around all day watching everyone! Yesterday he explored his lego toys floating near his den! He was touching them with 2 arms, not for very long, but it's a start! Also, he seems to be growing pretty fast. He barely fits into his barnacle holes any more! I fed him today and he decided to take his crab to another hole. First he could hardly get himself and his crab out of the hole he was in and then he never did fit everything into his other hole! He wound up sitting just outside while eating!

And then there are his "pet" shrimp!!! They hover around him when he's eating and every so often he tosses something out and they all go for it! Obviously it's just a coincidence, but it's pretty funny to watch. One was even sitting on his head for a bit!! Of course every so often he eats one too! Haha!!!! That's about it for the moment.

 

[DWhatley]

NOT coincidence! The shrimp are aware that the octopus is a messy eater.

Fish are the same (in the wild as well as in a tank) and will pester the octopus enough to make it shy or, the reason I stress NO FISH, will pick on an octopus either in defense of its territory or in an attempt to get scraps. JuggleMatt videoed an extreme fish attack that was before your time. Be aware that it is graphic and has an unhappy ending before you watch. He has since teamed up with PGS so you might enjoy reading the full thread before TONMOcon as Peter will be talking about this unusual group of octos and what they have observed.

I try to keep a peppermint shrimp pair in my octo tanks but usually one gets eaten and the other learns to keep its distance. I don't like to keep more than a pair though as they can be rather vicious in groups. On the rare occasion I get to try hatchlings, I will put a pair in a breeder net and over feed them to provide food for the hatchlings (keeping a pair in a small environment with lots of food seems to induce spawning. More than two gets reduced to two quickly. Most shrimp are both male and female but need a partner to produce offspring) . I am never sure if the fry are eaten but the peps would eat the octo hatchlings if they escaped so I keep a close eye on them.

 

[spinycheek]

That's funny, I was just about to start a thread asking about using peppermint shrimp in a ceph tank to keep Aiptasia at bay. I guess it can be done!

 

[DWhatley]

Note that it is better to add the shrimp BEFORE the octopus. If the octopus is in residence, you can attempt to introduce the shrimp when it is sleeping but the shrimp still needs to learn the tank and may not survive.

 

[Teacher Kim]

DaVinci FINALLY touched my finger!! Of course what he really wanted was the feeding stick! But still, I see it as a step forward! He has been feeding off the sticks pretty much ever since I got him and yesterday is the first time he ever reached all the way up to my fingers and held on! He is pretty strong! He tried to pull my finger into his den, but I gently stood my ground because I didn't want to be mistaken for a crab! LOL!

OK, no one laugh please.... actually I'm laughing already! I think my computer and phone are alive and trying to drive me crazy! I would LOVE to post a couple of pictures and one good video, however, are you ready for this..... I type in my email address and it all goes to my daughter's cell phone!! We can find NO logical reason so far! I am heading over to Verizon as soon as I get time to see what's up... but who knows when that will be! Anyway, DaVinci is soooo cool and kids just love him!! He's out every day and is also growing fast!

Am getting really busy with end of the year school stuff, so just FYI, no news is good news! Will check back tomorrow night to see if anyone has ideas about phone/email! It's just so wierd to me!!

 

[DWhatley]

Through some Facebook posts, I know of someone else who was having very odd, all of a sudden problems, with their email on ATT and the discussion suggested that many of the phone carriers use outside email services. It took several days and trips to the ATT office but it was finally corrected so I hope your issue is more easily solved.

 

[Teacher Kim]

Very interesting! I haven't had a chance to check into it yet, but I DID realize that I could put pics and video directly on computer using my cable! Hopefully will have something to post soon!

It really bothers me that DaVinci is always taking the feeding stick. I know it's common, but I feel like he's going to poke himself or get a splinter! So today I poked a hole in this crab and stuck it on the end of a zip tie! It worked great and I wasn't so worried about him! Hopefully I will get a good video of him up soon!

 

[DWhatley]

Make sure there are no sharp edges on the zip tie. I still use them but we did get an apparent cut once from a sharp edge. Onn keeps her stick most every night now and it can be hours before she releases it. I am trying to come up with something she might like to collect that would be similar but not as likely to poke.

 

[Teacher Kim]

Yes, I always wash and go over everything that goes in his tank to make sure clean and no sharp edges. Yesterday I gave him a new "toy". He was interacting with the legos again, so I thought I'd put something new in for him. I strungs some plastic preschool beads on a piece of plastic lacing and dropped it in the tank. He watched it for a few seconds and then started fooling around with it. I actually got it on video! (Hopefully to be posted sometime today!) He has really become social in the past week and yesterday was a real breakthrough! He came to the front of the glass twice and kept coming out when the kids would come up to the tank.

He also ate two pieces of krill I thawed out and gave him. Wasn't sure if he'd like it, but thought I'd try just to give him a little variety. By the way, I still have NOT gotten a good look at his arms, so I'm still guessing when calling him a "him"!!! LOL! At some point in the near future I should be able to get a good look and will then know more!!

 

[DWhatley]

THANKS for the bead idea! Onn keeps her feeding stick for hours (most only tank an interest for an hour tops) so I have been trying to come up with something. We thought about glass marbles but a string of hard, round, unpainted (often we mention baby safe stuff) is just the kind of thing I was trying to think about. Make sure DaVinci is not chewing on the plastic though. This is not usually a problem but if it is soft, he might as I have seen them bit through zip ties.

 

[Teacher Kim]

Glad I came up with something useful ti you!! I owe u so much!! DaVinci has to be the coolest thing I have ever had! (abd I have had many crazy exotics over the years!!) i see why people get hooked! The other day he ate 4 fiddler crabs at one sitting!! Might be time to start looking checking out whats at our local warf!! Have sime great video. Hope to get it up next week! On way to Tahoe for annual Cinco de Mayo Sammy Hagar concert!! Will check back when get home!

 

[Teacher Kim]

Glad I came up with something useful ti you!! I owe u so much!! DaVinci has to be the coolest thing I have ever had! (abd I have had many crazy exotics over the years!!) i see why people get hooked! The other day he ate 4 fiddler crabs at one sitting!! Might be time to start looking checking out whats at our local warf!! Have sime great video. Hope to get it up next week! On way to Tahoe for annual Cinco de Mayo Sammy Hagar concert!! Will check back when get home!