Fletcher - O. Hummelincki

[Nancy]

Before you leave, you should inspect your tank for escape possibilities. Octopuses are strong - you might want to use duct tape to tape down your tank lid.

Nancy

 

[Tommycs]

Thanks Nancy, I'll do that today, I bought a screen repair kit so it has little squares of mesh that I plan to use. Also, I have two metal latches installed, one on each side so I am pretty sure he won't be able to get out by lifting the hood however I may choose to tape it anyway.

 

[DWhatley]

Tommy,
You need to watch those metal latches and consider replacing them with plastic/acrylic. Saltwater will distroy just about any metal in short order. Even the "stainless steel" that we get in the home improvement stores is not usually of the quality that will stand up to salt exposure.

 

[Tommycs]

I never even thought about that. I will see what I can do about replacing them with plastic.

 

[Tommycs]

Sorry I haven't posted in a few days, I was dragged on an unexpected vacation and just returned today. I went to the grocery store today and bought some shrimp and fed him that and he took it almost immediately, So that should solve that problem. Also we have made contact a couple of times. Like when he was climbing to the overflow and I was trying to push him back down, he would reach one tentacle out and grab me. I pulled away because I was unsure of his intentions. I'll post more pictures but after I pulled my finger away from him he continued climbing so I moved the mag float around a little and he looked just like except he had a spherical shape protruding from the end of his mantle.

 

[DWhatley]

It is hard not to jerk when you first start interacting and even now with SueNami, I tend to react with a flinch because I often can't see him if we are playing at night. Try not to though as it scares them more than it scares you. If he pulls, touch the back of the arm and that will usually cause them to release but if he doesn't pull, allow him to investigate. IME they won't act like the movie aliens and grab on to you before you can blink (this has happened a couple of times in the wild though but without dire consequences ). With the exception of OhToo trying desparately not to be left on the bottom substrate, the touch is investigative and will get very gentle without any pulling if you encourage contact but discourage pulling. Once OhToo was placed in a soft net, he was normal again even though he was dieing.

Since Fletcher is so insistent on climbing, be very sure you watch him closely when you change water or clean the tank. Once Octane started trying to investigate outside the tank, I had numerous issues with keeping him in (and ultimately lost him because the tank was left open). His first escape was during a water change. I was on one side of the tank and he just climbed out the other. Total panic ensued and he literally climbed the corner of the nearest wall while I was chasing him. After he got over the shock (several days, maybe a week) he must have decided running around was interesting as he would attempt escape during many cleanings. 2/3 of the tank lid was hinged and I could guide him to the flipped up part and close it partially to get him back into the water.

I don't think I had any water problems when Octane started his adventures (nothing ever tested even a little off) but I knew he was aging and was doing two water changes a week (one more than normal). Trying to do an extra water change before the kids came and having them come in the middle of my effort is how I left the tank open. The way this tank was set up, it was not obvious the lid was open at a casual glance. Animal_Mother also has video of Kalypso trying escape techniques so be aware that you are likely going to have to deal with the issue. I don't know if venturing out of the tank is an individual octopus or species attribute but we have noticed that an inside lip around the tank appears to inhibit this behavior so the newest tank's lid will be designed this way. SunNami's tank, Beldar's hex and the dwarf tank are all set up this way and we have never had escape attempts in those tanks but that may be antecdotal without real merit.

 

[Tommycs]

Thanks D, any comment on the coloration along with the thing on the tip of his mantle. Also The "vacation" I went on was to cape may, NJ and I went swimming in the ocean and there was quite a few dolphins that were only about 20 feet away. I just thought I might share that experience since it is somewhat related and is really the first interesting sea creature I have seen off the coast of NJ.

 

[DWhatley]

There is nothing odd about any color an octo displays but a good definition of mood (if there is one) has not been determined. Some color displays on some octopuses can be seen to repeat within a species (like the bright white and bright eyespot startled expression) but even then what makes them use one display over another is not well documented and has been noted by some of the scientists as puzzling. When they stop being able to change color, look grey (vs white for the merc and briareus) or part of the display can no longer color (not to be confused with intentional left right coloring) is when you worry. If the spherical thing at the end of the mantle looks like a little pigtail then it has been my conjecture that octos that can show a lot of texture (some cannot) will show this when they are smooth and seems to have something to do with where to put the extra skin. This is just an "appears to be" description as I have no idea if the concept is accurate in reality.

I was wading in the surf when a pod of dolphins came close to shore once but was chicken to go the extra 20' to see what would happen if I got close. Probably just as well but I will always wonder but when you are in their environment, they are big animals (she says as she pets the Irish wolfhound). We got to see our first free roaming shark insitu this year while snokeling at a small park. He was only about 3' and I was surprised I was not afraid and was disappointed it vanished into the not so clear water before I could get a picture.

 

[Tommycs]

Alright D, Thanks and it sounds pretty neat, some of your encounters with marine life.
Fletcher has been coming out a little bit more but still turns ghost white if I put my finger too close. He still has not been on the glass on the front of the tank so I am still only making a random assumption that it is a boy. He has been eating thawed frozen shrimp. I am getting a little tired of explaining everyday to people what he eats, how long he lives, what he can be kept with etc. but I guess I knew I had that coming. There's really not too much to update on, still having a little trouble with the AC in the house, The water is around 78 or 79, Is this going to be a problem if it is like this for the next week or so? It is about 76.5 with the lights off usually but with the lights on it's about 79. I'll try to get some more pictures today.

 

[DWhatley]

I am getting a little tired of explaining everyday to people what he eats, how long he lives, what he can be kept with etc. but I guess I knew I had that coming.

My family gets a little tired of me explaining ...

 

[sedna]

My family gets a little tired of me explaining ...

Try feeding a raw diet to your dog. Explaining that is even less popular than telling them you're going to feed those cute little crabs to your octo!

 

[Tommycs]

Yeah, If I get tired of answering the questions, hopefully they'll get tired of asking them.
Any comment on the temperature issue?

 

[DWhatley]

78 SHOULD not be terrible and SueNami (briareus) is living with 79-80 these days but I was always able to keep the hummelincki's tanks lower. One of the main reasons I recommend 75 is that they live in a range +/- 5 degrees and that provides a swing within their known tolerance. We have, however, noticed that SueNami is much more active in the early AM when the temp drops to 76. Since he is a crepceular (morning and evening rather than night time) species it is not definite that the activity has to do with the cooler temps but the times he is most active are later than would be expected (2:00 - 4:00 AM).

 

[Tommycs]

So today, we made full contact for the first time and he is starting to come out of his den about two or three times per day now which has improved. He swam up and with one arm grabbed my finger. I'm not sure if he thought I was food but I have a feeling he was just being curious. But after he tasted me he swam back down to his den and hid. I'm going to try again and hopefully he will come all the way to my hand (and hopefully I don't get bitten).

 

[DWhatley]

Work with him to get him to touch you without pulling (you will know the difference). Once he will stay and not run after touching (likely a week or two - don't rush it and don't chase him), very, very gently (you may not even know you are touching him) stroke his mantle with one finger. Not unlike dogs and cats, many octos (especially hummelincki) respond favorably to this once they are accustom to your hand. After he allows touching, try a finger between the eyes. Both my males would come up to be petted at least once a day, often more often. Octane would allow my mother and granddaughter to pet him but was not fond of Neal's touch.