We attempted to feed the some of the growing young thawed frozen-shrimp for the first time only to have it rejected by each individual. This is consistent with the behavior exhibited by baby octopuses of other species: they only go after live prey. Also, one of the young octopus passed away from unknown causes. When placed under the microscope, the octopus' chromatophores were still active and responsive to light and touch.
0 Comments
The mother O. bimaculoides (Jake) was found deceased with 9 infertile or undeveloped eggs remaining behind in the abalone shell used for brooding. Up until now, she has been with us for approximately 5 months.
The baby octopuses were given live guppy fry that were bred and raised. Highlighted throughout the video, the young octopus displays a hunting and ambush style behavior until they catch and consume the guppy fry.
After days of unsuccessful attempts, the octopus fry that hatched on April 1st have accepted live blood worms as a food source.
Hordes of young O. bimaculoides fry have begun to hatch and continue to dominate the tank. It is apparent when they hatch as they squirt a yet of ink the moment they escape their egg capsules.
The first of several hundreds of baby O. bimaculoides have finally hatched out of their egg capsules. The second they hatch, the baby larvae squirt ink and dash to any piece of rock or shell for shelter. Overall, approximately a dozen have hatched. They appear to be very active and display an interesting behavior: raising their two front tentacles towards any approaching figure, possibly as a warning sign. If the intruder does not back off, the baby octopus squirts ink and jets off.
The octopus larvae are very active in their egg capsules. They have greater control over their chromatophores, changing from shades of brown to completely white within seconds. The egg capsules even shake as the larvae moves about in the capsules. We anticipate for them hatching any day now.
While cleaning the tank, we discovered a clump of the eggs were knocked off of the abalone shell. The octopus larvae have developed eyes and even display changes in their chromatophores. About 30 of the egg capsules were taken from this tank and placed in a tank at a cooler temperature of 15 degrees Celsius. We aim to discover degree temperature has on the development of the larvae. After several weeks the first signs of development are becoming apparent. Many of the eggs have developed a pair of very dull, black eye spots.
First signs of eggs were spotted guarded by the mother O. bimaculoides, under one of the abalone shells in the tank. There appears to be several hundred egg capsules attached to the underside of the abalone shell. From this moment on, Jake displays aggressive behavior towards any intruders coming into the close vicinity of the eggs and has rejected all food sources given to her. |
AuthorsAndrew and Alex are undergraduate students working in Gillette Lab at The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Archives
April 2016
Categories |