[Octopus]: Pablo - O. Hummelincki First time First Octo

KA&KA

Cuttlefish
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Hello Ceph friends. After lurking for 4 months while our tank cycles we found an octopus. I am a nervous wreck and though I am confident it will be happy in the tank I am not completely sure we have it baby proof.

It is from That Fish Place in Lancaster PA and its given ID is vulgaris though seems small so maybe a young one. Its head about 2.5 to 3 inches long with legs about 5 to 7. right now it is in a plastic critter carrier with a ceramic bird house to hide in within the larger habitat, which is similar to the situation it was in at the store.I need to I fast track a few remaining Octo proofing details. It is very active and does not seem shy. It spends most of its time outside but has entered the house numerous times exploring.

We have the top of the tank sealed but my main concern is the vertical slots at the top of the corner over flow. I feel like they may be just a touch too wide. A 16th of an inch. Is that cutting it too close? I just can't think of a way to use a finer mesh or sponge that would not slow the water flow too much.
 
:welcome: KA&KA (I assume you are a cohabitating pair? :biggrin2:),

Do you have a strainer on your bulkhead fitting? Overflows are generally a containment problem, especially for small octos. I have had hatchlings go through to the sump but a strainer has kept animals this size contained within the overflow (here is an example. They come in both threaded and slip styles depending on the inside of your bulkhead). This won't keep them out of the overflow box but will likely keep them in the tank. If you can light the area over the overflow box, this is also helpful. In one tank I keep a light directed into that area 24/7. If you can't isolate the overflow box from the top, a water proof light placed inside will help (the brighter the better).

With a few exceptions, you can almost count on the animal escaping a critter keeper within a week. Also note that the first couple of weeks the animal will display much different (often more active and more "friendly") behavior than after it is fully acclimated to the new environment.

Most vendors have no clue as to species and some species are very hard to guess from a casual look but a photograph should at least eliminate some and possibly ID your new ward. Unfortunately, it is impossible to guess the species from your description but if the arms are about twice the mantle length than it is not likely a briareus (FL species). Since you are in PA, it is most likely an imported animal but asking your supplier the origination will help to narrow the possibilities. I collected a few new keeper discussions in the Posts with Info for New Octo Keepers sticky that may be helpful with determining potential species.
 
Thank so much for your feedback! We are a father\daughter team, Kevin and Kathy.

Its not tiny, just not as large as I figure a vulgaris could be. Maybe about half the size. I have seen them in the wild a number of times in Florida where I lived many years. I don't think its a briareus since the mantle is not large and its too big to be a pygmy, I think. Since it came with the name vulgaris I am hoping that is with some certainty. The people I talked to at the store could not say where it came from. Anyhow, vulgaris is what we have been hoping for when we began researching our project many months ago.

We just fed him and he ate the last two sections of a shrimps tail. I wish I could see his beak to get a good idea how big it is. If I could just be sure he can not fit through the slots I was worried about. It did not take long to make the shrimp disappear including the shell so I cannot imagine its all that tiny.

I did find a block of filter sponge that I believe will work. I cut a slot along its length so it slides over the fence to cover the slots from both sides and also fills the space above the over flow. It seems secure at the moment but I think I reinforce it from inside the over flow to reduce the chance it can be shifted around.

He ate from inside the critter carrier but I left the top unsecure so he can leave it when he is ready to explore the rest of the aquarium. He is a really neat!
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OK, I'll make a 90% confidence call that this is O. hummelincki (frequently mistaken for O. vulgaris when not observed closely and for O. bimaculatus when the source is unknown. The thin ring at the tips of the suckers would be orange for bimaculatus and the siphon a bright orange and no ocellus for vulgaris. I see neither of these). Probably from Haiti (but I would love to know we are seeing them again in the Caribbean). Great diurnal octopus but this one is probably full grown so your time will be limited. I don't think you will have a problem with your overflow as this species does not seem to compress as much as other species and it is sized large enough that I would not worry (famous last words). If you look carefully just below the eyes you should see two matching circles. When it is excited you will see a target looking set of concentric rings or yellow, blue and yellow. You can use the search for titles only and the word, Hummelincki, to find journals but here is a link to Maya's, journal as I think the images and videos show her eye spot (ocellus) in various degrees of display. The first still image in post #14 shows the most vivid coloration.

As for the shrimp, the octopus will not eat (and does not need) the shell or head. If it will take a peeled shrimp all the better as it will not foul the tank. Occasionally I have had to start with the shell on and start removing the shells after it became accustomed to being fed but this is the exception and not the norm. We even had one that would devein its shrimp :roll:

I've attached a panel from my OctoId talk at TONMOcon VI for a quick reference (O. vulgaris is not represented because we don't see many of them in the trade) but keep in mind that these are octopuses, masters of disguise, and they can take on different characteristics at any given time. You obviously have seen both smooth and rough skin already.
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We noticed the ring and you can see it in the second of my photos above. The lighting is low but the ring was prominent at the time. I had the feeling it was a field mark of some kind. Its behavior is much like you described for Maya, at least in the beginning. We are calling him Pablo. I hope its a male. I am not ready to go through the stress of caring for a brooding octopus this time around.

Thanks so much for all the info. This is all really great!
 
O. hummelincki is highly favored but hard to find young. Most come from Haiti but since the earthquake, few have been imported. They are also native to the FL Keys but we have not seen them from there in a number of years (the extreme cold snap of 2010 seems to have effected all octopuses except O. briareus in that region and the Gulf oil spill may have impacted O. vulgaris in the Gulf. We have never seen many vulgaris though so I suspect the spill comments are unfounded). Many have been female and brood after less than a month in the tank and it has been my conjecture that the females are more easily caught just before brooding because they are out hunting to prepare for the brood fast.

Unfortunately, this is a small egg species and we (collectively, including public aquariums and labs) have not been successful raising any hatchlings to adults. The small egg animals are pelagic for about a month and the failure to grow them to the benthic stage is thought to be a food issue. A VERY few animals have survived to the benthic stage in a lab type environment (I have read of one Alaskan and one Spanish vulgaris species) by feeding new hatched crabs.

Research continues but acquiring live crab zoea is a challenge. I have a captive blue crab female (long story but the kids only brought a female instead of the pair I wanted from the in-laws in Savannah) and a smaller male (serendipitously showing up shortly later from a different source). Once the male is large enough, I will put the two together and see if I get one dead male or if they will live harmoniously and produce offspring. My plan is to catch the offspring (they are not likely to survive) and freeze them. If and when I have a brood (small or large egg), I will try feeding the frozen and allow any live that may be born during their hatching to circulate the tank.

Large egg species (O. bimaculoides, O. mercatoris and O. briareus being the most common and listed in success order) have success stories but in very small numbers. These take longer to hatch, are fully formed at birth and immediately (within a day or two) hide in the substrate.

We encourage members to try anything that they dream up when working with the hatchlings and I will be glad to point you to some of the threads if you end up in this situation.

Lastly, I recommend that you, "release the Kraken" to the tank :wink:
 
So O. hummelincki is the Bumble bee two-spot? That's a great common name to throw around. My guess is that we will have more then the normal amount of visitors for a while.

I did not notice it so much at the time I took this but the spot is very blue in this instance. It would have made me nervous thinking of the blue ringed. He is out of the carrier now and exploring. He already found one of the snails and is carrying it around. Two damsels that have been enhabiting the tank are still there. They are up for adoption though there is no telling how long they we be here.

Is there any concerns about having them together other then that Pablo may eat them eventually?

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I know raising hatchlings would be near impossible given my resources but I would be compelled to ate least give it a try if it came to that. Just hope its a male.

When I was a kid it was common to see O vulgaris along the north gulf coast. I have to assume thats what they were since they were fairly large sized. We would find the little pygmys as well picking up cans and bottles.

Are there frequently seen in the atlantic? It thought they showed up as a by catch as far north as South Carolina.

A lot has changed, not just oil spills but water quality in general and temperature as well.
 
Octo keeping is relatively new and identification is still the odd man out so relatively few fishermen would know a species. O. vulgaris is commonly known as the "Common Octopus" but the term is more European. In some small country languages there is not a separate name for squid, octopus or cuttlefish. Many octopuses have been placed in and out of the vulgaris name and it has become a "complex" more than a specific species and found in some form all over the world. O. hummelincki is one originally named O. filosus (Howell, 1867) then denied the name placing it as vulgaris and rediscovered as O. hummelincki (Adam 1936).
There has been a taxonomic argument for years on which should be the proper name. The current officially accepted (except by many scientists) name is O. hummelincki. :biggrin2: There are several others with the same scenario. To add to the confusion, the Common Caribbean Octopus often gets called the Common Octopus and then is translated to O. vulgaris. The CCO is O. briareus and very easily distinguished. Sooo, in answer to your question, I don't have any feeling for how common O. vulgaris is or was along the Eastern seaboard but do know there were fairly common in the Gulf. I have been lucky enough to have one (LittleBit) and would dearly love another. @sirreal also had one some years ago and is hoping to find more this year to offer to our community (I have called first dibs though :sagrin:)

Yes, Bumble Bee is a common name for O. hummelincki and oddly, the size on this animal varies greatly (per a study I read that collected several hundred). They were once described as a dwarf but are now classified as medium. This could mean there are actually two species. We simply don't know. I wondered about the Bumble Bee name until Maya displayed a behavior none of my others ever showed (you may have read the note in her journal). I felt that it was an attack behavior but did not leave my hand in the tank to find out.

To discover Pablo's sex, you will want to observe the third arm to the right (clockwise as you orient your eyes with the octo's). If Pablo carries that arm mostly curled up it is a sign that this is the specialized arm used to transfer spermatophores to the female. Not easily seen on many species (and I have never been able to observe it on O. hummelincki while alive) there is a channel running the length of this arm to convey the packets. The tip is also modified and funnel shaped without suckers but is quite small on this species and not easily observed. However, the curled protection is usually obvious once the animal is comfortable in the tank. We've collected a few photos in this thread to help visualize the identifying arm.

I am a strong opponent of any fish being housed with an octopus, damsels being the worst of the lot. At best fish will pester an octopus (this is also true in the wild) for scraps as it eats. At worst, they will be territorial and either attack the animal or stress it badly. Octos can die from stress and we have seen one recent case where this was likely the cause of an animal's demise. Here is a link to some suggested tankmates as well as a documented case why we suggest no fish.
 
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Last night when we said good night he was sitting inside his bird house peering out with one eye visible. Today he spent most of the day perched on the roof and then retreated to his favorite hide tucked down behind a rock under the house where he is almost invisible. seems to me there are plenty better options but that seems to be his favorite.

I prepared a tank for the damsels and with back up help at the end of the day we managed to catch them. Pablo seemed to help in that every time they tried to hunker in his hide he stuck out an arm to wave them away. I thought we would not see him out after but he did reappear and we fed him a piece of shrimp. Now he has the tank to himself, and can focus on us for interaction. If we ignore him all day will he come bounding out like a puppy dog when we come home from school, and work?

Now I am in love with hummelincki. I had not really considered it or briareus. I am not crazy about importing creatures from the other side of the planet. I prefer getting to know animals I am likely to see in the wild so I was thinking vulgaris because it is more temperate. On my next trip south I was planning to check out the fish houses along the coast to see what I would find.

Our tank is a 65 gal and Pablo seems to have plenty of space. He does seem to bed down at night and is usually somewhere to be seen during the day. So far I have not noticed a specialized arm but have not had a good opportunity to look today since we were so focused on the fish. Hopefully its there and we won't have to change his name to Paula.

It would be great if they could be bred reliably as perfect as they are. It would be nice to be able to predict what kind, when and how long you would own an octopus and it would take some of the stress away from captured animals.

So I have a few more questions though I certainly understand if they go unanswered. Is O hummelincki very rare or possibly endangered? WHy is Haiti a primary source and did the earthquack affect their population directly or the people doing the collecting. Do they live in any kind of specialized habitat? What is, if anything, known about the habits of the juvs? And finally, could they have a toxin or mild venom?
 
I'll start with toxins and include touching. To our knowledge, all octopuses have some form of venom. There is only one genus of octopus that is known to be deadly to humans and it is unknown (last I read, @Neogonodactylus please correct me if this has changed) if Blue Rings (genus Hapalochlaena) actually manufacture TTX (tetrodotoxin) or if it is something acquired. The venom of many others has not been well studied but the venom of animals we typically keep are not generally a long term or life threatening concern UNLESS the person bitten has serious allergies (similar to bee stings for some people). We have no journaled long lasting effects or serious illness but I invite you to entertain yourself with our Octopus Bites thread. Be sure to read Neogonodactylus' entry and envision a remake of the movie Airplane :biggrin2:. It is best not to tempt being bitten but it takes awhile (and a few octopuses) to get a feel for how they interact. I am very guilty of hands on with mine so I won't even suggest that part of my enjoyment does not involve touching. What I do try to promote is a very slow approach to interaction if this is part of the keeping experience you want to pursue. The first step is letting the animal come to you and allow it to be curious. It usually involves a "touch and go" during feeding or tank clean-up. As the animal gains confidence, grabbing and pulling follow. Touch and goes usually surprise and scare the octopus and the keeper :biggrin2:. Avoiding jerking (usually not possible the first time) and being firm (with a only the necessary backward pulling of the hand) about not allowing fingers to be brought to the mouth are important. Over time the pulling becomes more of an exploritory tickle. If multiple arms are too much or the octopus insists on trying to taste, usually a light stroke on the top of the arm with a free finger (you have 5 and the octo won't use all eight arms) will accomplish a voluntary release.

There is little study done on O. hummelincki and nothing I have seen that is recent. It is not considered endangered but we really don't have studies. Unlike known animals, habitat is not a known problem (earthquakes, oil spills and changing oceans excepted) and it is not hunted for food. Here are links to the few articles I have found. At one time we saw quite a few animals for sale but they have been few and far between in the last couple of years (even before the earthquake but almost no existent since). Haiti is likely a source simply because fish collectors import from there with little restriction. Not many local collectors care to deal with octopuses because of the difficulties with housing and shipping. I suspect the disruption to daily life in Haiti may have more to do with not seeing the imported animals than the earthquake itself but that is just a guess. Several I have had were caught in the FL Keys explicitly for me but I have not kept one for a number of years. Pretty much anyone who keeps one wishes we could captive raise them but so far there does not appear to be a large egg warm water cousin (the Pacific cold water bimaculoides is a large egg cousin of the small egg bimaculatus. O. hummelincki is often mislabled as a bimac).

Currently the most common local animal offered for sale is O. briareus. They are more than plentiful and the bane of the crab collectors. Fortunately for us a few crabbers have found they can sell these crab thieves but most become bait.

All octopuses need a dark place to hide. I prefer to use live rock but any kind of dark cave will be accepted. This species definitely needs it beauty sleep but you can light part of the tank with a red light at night. However, these are usually very diurnal and with or without a light, you are not likely to see night time activity.
 
You have a great octo. Its great how we fall in love with our octos. They can be very interactive and like you said they will act like a dog and dance around like hey over here i am out and want attention. I have not had a hummelincki yet but I look forward to having one in the future. I had a Vulgaris many many years ago and he is the reason i like them so much. To be honest if my first octo would have been a merc I prob would not be as interested in octos today. Not that mercs are bad but being so nocturnal that you almost never see them during the day makes it hard to create that bond. I hope you have a long time with pablo
 
Thank you! and Thank you! You all are so generous with your knowledge and support. I am sure Pablo wont be our first and I hope we'll have the opportunity to pay it forward some day.

Our octopus seems to be doing fine and settling down a little. Not quite as exploratory but not so easy going about our presence yet. I meant to get the lights timed so they would go off later in the evening after we all have had time to be home but they went off early anyhow. When I turn them back on at 8:30 he came out for us and just sat on his house. We fed him a section of shrimp. and after a while he went back down.

I have been feeding him one or two sections of shrimp a day. Is that enough? Maybe he will start begging for more when he gets more comfortable.

Here is a photo of his habitat. I expect he'll rearrange things. Though we have not seen him explore many of nooks and crannys available. We invested in a few pieces of live rock and we plan to add more. Its pretty expensive up here. There is one long piece of PVC with corners to provide at least one truly dark confined place. He is visible at the top of the bird house which is a favorite spot.
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There are multiple opinions on feeding. I won't say they are contradictory since quantities may average out and/or there may be a difference in species or cold vs warm water animals. Some people feed every two to three days. @Neogonodactylus feels this may increase life span. I feed 6 days a week with one day fasting (and will sometimes give a small snack if the octopus actively dances after normal feeding time). My animals seem to live a natural lifespan but not an extended one. In either feeding scheme, the animal is given as much as it wants to eat during meal time. This varies highly from animal to animal (and is not explicitly species dependent) as well as the age and maturation of the animal (increasing as it grows then decreasing as it reaches senescence). We have had hummelincki to eat full medium sized shrimp during most of its life (this one ate much more than others). IME, during senescence, hummelincki often only want food every other day, eventually not eating at all and their lives ending somewhere between one and two weeks after they stop eating. I would suggest offering a whole shrimp and seeing if there is left over then guessing about how much it ate and offering slightly more the next feeding until it fully consumes the offering. Since I believe this one to be an adult, you can watch for left overs and reduce again as needed. I don't believe they will over eat but, again, there are other opinions.

Do try to offer a variety. If you fast the animal but worry about it being hungry, you can keep a clam or two in the tank (and you get a bonus of a little bit of extra filtration). I use seafood counter clams but put them in an aerated bucket of tank water overnight (usually I change the water at least once) to be sure they are really alive and to flush pollutants. Pablo may eat it right away but once he/she is accustomed to being fed, clams require more energy to open and are not usually (note the hesitation) bothered unless the animal is quite hungry. If she is a female getting ready to brood she may consume anything she finds in the tank. You can also offer live fiddler crabs (any small live crab is fine but disable any serious claws by removing them or breaking off the pointed portion or lower section), occasional silver sides (small whole fish), pieces of raw salmon, claws from live blue crabs (we scrounge the Asian market live bin for claws and freeze them) and clam on the half shell (other mussels are fine as well but the clams don't make as much of a mess in the tank). Pretty much anything raw from ocean is acceptable but crustaceans are better than fish for daily feedings. You can also offer a live crayfish on occasion but be sure it is eaten and does not die in the tank. Being fresh water animals, they can usually survive about 2 hours - so I am told - but are usually hunted within minutes. Feeding live is considered a good idea for their health but this may be a mental issue with you or your daughter and is not totally necessary if Pablo is already accepting dead (keep this in mind for the next one though that not all accept dead immediately).

If you could pile your rocks more into a den like structure, Pablo might find that more appealing. Some species are quite active about rearranging their tanks but I have not seen this with O. hummelincki (however, Maya did insist on having a gorgonian planted in front of her brood den). I have seen them excavate under rock to clear sand to make a den though. Many like to use small shells (large snail shells or bits of live rock) to make doors but I have not seen hummelincki move larger rocks to create a den (O. vulgaris and O. briareus on the other hand have moved quite large rocks in both my and other keeper's tanks).
 

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