Some updates.
Total of 24 hatchlings over 26 days. Very strange that is. I was able to photograph the only inking so far which was a nice little pseudomorph. No eggs left and I will be mating the female to my other male this week.
The adult coloring is taking hold:
Total of 24 hatchlings over 26 days. Very strange that is. I was able to photograph the only inking so far which was a nice little pseudomorph. No eggs left and I will be mating the female to my other male this week.
The adult coloring is taking hold:
My understanding is that small Octopuses only live like 6 months, which may explain the multiple broods. A smaller species may have been forced, over time to produce extra eggs in order to repopulate .... if you follow me.
To answer the question in general, the life of an octopus ranges from about 3 months to almost 7 or 8 years. Most, normal sized octopuses only live about 18 months. Most smaller species .... you can cut off about 12 of those months. There are exceptions. I hear that the tiny "Arctic Octo." lives about as long as the Giant Pacific (5 plus years). Interestingly, MOST of the warmer octopuses that have been discovered (and all seem to be medium size) live much longer than a year. I'm not sure about any history of temps vs. lifespan though. Less feeding has proved to extend the lifespan of the Octopus in a reef tank .... but c'mon .... have you EVER seen anything cooler than an octopus eating? And they ALWAYS want a treat. You gonna say no? I'm sure that a regular and systematic approach to feeding is going to be key.
The smaller guys tend do have a shorter lifespan. My guess is you have about 3-4 months from baby, to dead adult.
Now, if you can keep a sustainable culture, that's something only a few people have done in hobbyist setups. You know James Wood I'm sure, and Roger Hanlon. So .... my best wishes are with you .... but my prediction is not so rosy. A lot of people have had baby octos .... but actually breeding them is something very few people have done.
Best,
Adam
To answer the question in general, the life of an octopus ranges from about 3 months to almost 7 or 8 years. Most, normal sized octopuses only live about 18 months. Most smaller species .... you can cut off about 12 of those months. There are exceptions. I hear that the tiny "Arctic Octo." lives about as long as the Giant Pacific (5 plus years). Interestingly, MOST of the warmer octopuses that have been discovered (and all seem to be medium size) live much longer than a year. I'm not sure about any history of temps vs. lifespan though. Less feeding has proved to extend the lifespan of the Octopus in a reef tank .... but c'mon .... have you EVER seen anything cooler than an octopus eating? And they ALWAYS want a treat. You gonna say no? I'm sure that a regular and systematic approach to feeding is going to be key.
The smaller guys tend do have a shorter lifespan. My guess is you have about 3-4 months from baby, to dead adult.
Now, if you can keep a sustainable culture, that's something only a few people have done in hobbyist setups. You know James Wood I'm sure, and Roger Hanlon. So .... my best wishes are with you .... but my prediction is not so rosy. A lot of people have had baby octos .... but actually breeding them is something very few people have done.
Best,
Adam
Rich is quite busy right now, give him time, he'll answer.
BTW, did you read the whole thread? First page shows his set-up. The left upper side is where the cubes are for them. The male(s) and female(s) are separated from each other
If you cruise over to TONMO you'll see more on this then is posted here
BTW, did you read the whole thread? First page shows his set-up. The left upper side is where the cubes are for them. The male(s) and female(s) are separated from each other
If you cruise over to TONMO you'll see more on this then is posted here
Hey guys,
It feels like its my first 'weekend' in months!
We don't really have a great handle on the lifespan, we are guessing between 12 and 18 months. The oldest hatchlings we have is 130 days or there 'bouts.
This species just lays multiple broods. There seem to be a few large egged species that do this. Pretty cool if you ask me.
This species seems very similar to blue rings another small octo, that lives between 12 and 18 months generally.
The female I have had since April, so that about 6 months, and she was large at the time I got her.
My system is pretty crazy, as are the sister systems at the Lab at UCB. Mine now has a water table with space for over 30 octo boxes.
When we mate them, they go into a photo/video tank, so they all move around.
The current issue at the moment is we only have one female, and the hatchlings all seem to be female. Of course the big issue is genetic diversity, and other adult specimens are just not available. This is a huge issue with captive cephs - broodstock is hard, if not impossible to get.
There are actually many people breeding octos recently - bimacs, mercs, and some others. Its a really great time to be in cephs.
This species is only mentioned a little in the new TFH ceph book. Much of that was written before the work with them started. That book is pretty good, I read most of it before it was finalized. Look for pics of mine and a pic of me in it! Freaky. My copy is supposed to arrive any day now.
It feels like its my first 'weekend' in months!
We don't really have a great handle on the lifespan, we are guessing between 12 and 18 months. The oldest hatchlings we have is 130 days or there 'bouts.
This species just lays multiple broods. There seem to be a few large egged species that do this. Pretty cool if you ask me.
This species seems very similar to blue rings another small octo, that lives between 12 and 18 months generally.
The female I have had since April, so that about 6 months, and she was large at the time I got her.
My system is pretty crazy, as are the sister systems at the Lab at UCB.
Mine now has a water table with space for over 30 octo boxes. When we mate them, they go into a photo/video tank, so they all move around.
The current issue at the moment is we only have one female, and the hatchlings all seem to be female. Of course the big issue is genetic diversity, and other adult specimens are just not available. This is a huge issue with captive cephs - broodstock is hard, if not impossible to get.
There are actually many people breeding octos recently - bimacs, mercs, and some others. Its a really great time to be in cephs.
This species is only mentioned a little in the new TFH ceph book. Much of that was written before the work with them started. That book is pretty good, I read most of it before it was finalized. Look for pics of mine and a pic of me in it! Freaky. My copy is supposed to arrive any day now.
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