[Octopus]: Onn - O. briareus

DWhatley

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Still working on a name but on Thursday, I was honored with not one but two little guys to end our octolessness. This one was a live rock stowaway that escaped detection for several weeks, eating the crab livestock Kara and Philipp collect for sale. I knew I was getting this one and saw a preview photo but thought it was a bit older (eyes still show the bright blue circle of an animal that is maybe 6 weeks or less old). I was very concerned during acclimation as I could tell it was very stressed. Breathing was heavy anytime is would notice me and it stayed on the outer wall all day. By night it moved to the back wall behind the live rock but still did not den. Fortunately, by morning it found one of the two crabs and was struggling to pull it into the live rock and today I saw it elminiate its meal so I think it is adjusting :fingerscrossed: First posted pictures with my new Nikon P7200 (new camera, older model. My beloved Canon G9 suffered a fatal fall) ​
 

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Yes, I thought he/she was a little older from the photo and knowing it was in the system for awhile. NOT complaining mind you but survival is more of a concern. However, it is eating and took a piece of shrimp on a stick tonight so things are looking good. I am also glad that these are of different ages so I have a better chance of no losing both at almost the same time again.
 
Very cool! I like the way you have your live rock set up! Maybe that is part of my problem with Orange. The live rock is all across the back of the tank. Maybe I will try making a larger center area like yours. Good luck with both of them!!!
 
So far so good with this one. She/he is taking a small piece of thawed table shrimp once we wake her up and she detects the stick and she has consumed at least one live fiddler. She poked her head out of the rock tonight and did not vanish when we showed her attention from outside the glass so I am breathing easier.
 
Onn (Pronounced Ohn like Ohm with an n and comes from Octopus with No Name - Neal's doing) is even more recluse (or so it seems) than other very young O. briareus I have kept. She has found that the LR in her tank has a convenient cavity that completely hides her from view. Eventually she will outgrow it but I search for arms daily to be sure she is OK. Her unfortunate name comes from the fact that we have seen no personality traits and needed to call her something other than Tiny :roll:
 
We made Onn fast on Saturday because she was not coming out for food at all (I normally don't start the one day with no food until they are older). We have been leaving crabs for her to hunt at night but she needs at least a little change of diet. It still too a lot of patience and the help of a white light to wake her up but she peaked out enough to see her eyes and took the shrimp AND the feeding stick. She dragged the end of the feeding stick (the acrylic kind with a bend at the end) into her den and even after two hours, she refused to release it. At lease we know WHERE she is and that she is doing well :roll:
 
Waiting to be fed

I posted more on Margay's journal but wanted to record the date on Onn's as well. Both octos were waiting to be fed tonight and aggressively took their meal. After their initial two weeks of acclimation both have been very reclusive and needed coaxing to eat. Onn often had to be given live food for her to hunt because she would not come out for the offered meal (she would eat it when we could get her attention so it was not the food itself). I am expecting that both will now expect food and need less coaxing and plan to journal the observation.

As noted in Margay's thread, I initiated a poll to encourage other to capture similar timings.
 
We still pretty much only see arms taking food from Onn (she eats well but will not be coaxed out of her rock to retrieve dead food, live she hunts at night) but when I cleaned her tank today in full daylight, she "defended" her den by showing her arms if I came near her rock. She did not come out to the daylight side but she did appear in the back enough so that I could see her mantle and eyes.

I use "den defense" as a statement of being fully acclimated to aquarium life and hope this will be the beginning of more sightings.
 
I'm guessing Onn is about 3 months old now. She is still rarely seen but eats daily with some encouragement (primarily waking her up, she is all about the food once she is awake). Saturday night we saw her actually out on the glass (a first since acclimation). Once she noticed us she went back to the LR but stayed visible. Tonight it took awhile to wake her up for supper but once she had her shrimp in arm she stuck her eyes and mantle out of the rock to look at me and did not go back in for a few minutes (may have stayed longer but we let the dogs in to eat and they don't walk slowly to their food :roll:).
 
Yesterday I wiggled her shrimp around in the hole in one of the rock pockets to wake her up but did not see her for longer than it normally takes her to wake up. I happened to look down and notice that she was sitting in full view in an opening between the rocks looking at me. Tonight she came out of the same opening so I am hoping this means she is finally out growing the internal rock cavity and that she is gaining confidence in the outer world.
 
Move to Big Boy Tank After 3 months Onn has pretty much outgrown his den that is internal to the rock in his 40 gallon tank. The tank would probably be OK for another month with different live rock but I have his final tank ready so I moved him today. Unfortunately, I took pictures with too much outside lighting so most have sever reflection. Onn's new home.................................... ............. Exploring new tank with nursery tank in background Exploring He (I think I saw a channel on the third right arm and he was keeping the tip curled but often other arms were curled as well) spent the day exploring and stayed out all day and into the early evening. He was a little difficult to feed but eventually took his supper. During his explorations he crossed over several times but stayed primarily on the right until supper time and then decided to hide on the left. I don't think he has found a satisfactory den yet. These rocks do not have internal cavities like in his original tank but there should be an appropriate set of choices.
 

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Onn is starting to almost interact. He is out more and more during daylight (somewhere around 5:00 to 7:00) and occasionally in the middle of the day if he notices someone walking around. He is becoming less grabby and more curious but I have not attempted to pet his mantle when he holds on to my fingers. I will try to get some photos this week. Long rather thin arms and still a small mantle but appears health. He has appeared to take an interest in Margay over the last couple of months but lately, I have not seen them wall dancing together.
 

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