I am trying to find ways to help do conservation efforts concerning the octopuses (the two-spot) in my local area (encinitas, CA). If there is anything I can do please let me know
That's a nice thought - let us know if you find a way or a group that's working on this. I don't believe they're endangered but it would be good to find people looking out for them.
The Californian Two-spot octopus is our beloved O. bimaculoides, the species bred and sold by Octopets.
The two-spot is? interesting. As for finding a group, I think im outta luck. I have been searching for a while and posted caus I thought somebody on this website had some contacts. IN the mean time, just educating people about them when they walk by, look into my collecting bucket on a low tide, and give the usual "WOW" 's is the best I can do...
Do you think they are becoming harder to find? We're noticing this over here. Our 'most common' species, Pinnoctopus cordiformis, used to be super abundant on scallop (Pecten novaezelandiae) beds, but now that these are few and far between so too is the octopus.
I was looking at some photos of one of these octopus taken in the 60s, inside a lair adjacent to where scallops must have been prolific. The octopus den was absolutely surrounded by piles of the scallop shells ..... not something that you would see today at all!
I cant say they are particularly getting harder to find but I am noticing that over time I have been catching fewer and fewer of them. Many others besides me will find them on a low tide and be very rough with them because they have had no experience handling, or with an octo in general. the octos become afraid of all tidepool goers and push back a little farther out on the reef every time, and now you can only find them on -1 tides and lower. Pretty soon now it might become a rare sight to find them, and I sure wouldnt want that. I dont know what I can do to help them though...
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