Vital Idol
New member
Does a blue ring have many blue rings? One blue ring?
Or does it vary?
ANyone got a link to some pics?
Thanks,
Or does it vary?
ANyone got a link to some pics?
Thanks,
blue ring question
- Thread starter Vital Idol
- Start date
Gonodactylus
Premium Member
There are four recognized species. One is known from preserved material and I don't have a good idea of what the rings look like. The greather and lesser blue-ringed species have true rings over the mantle and arms. The blue-lined octopus has lines on the dorsal mantle and rings on the web.
I've attached a photo of a small undescribed male that I recently caught on the Great Barrier Reef.
Roy
I've attached a photo of a small undescribed male that I recently caught on the Great Barrier Reef.
Roy
alien for fish
New member
no wonder people want to keep them look at those colors
was that spieces very aggressive?that seems to be the tendancy of the blue ring, and have you ever heard of any one being bitten by a blue ring?
was that spieces very aggressive?that seems to be the tendancy of the blue ring, and have you ever heard of any one being bitten by a blue ring?
shermlock
New member
I have heard of a bunch of people getting bitten by a blue ring but those are swimming accidents. I have never heard of a reefer getting bitten though. That may be because whenever anybody asks about the keeping of the animal, they get discouraged by RC members. Too dangerous in most people's opinions. Better left in the ocean or the public aquariums. Beautiful animal but as with all beautiful animals...they come with a price.
Scott
Scott
Gonodactylus
Premium Member
The couple of males I had this time were pretty skiddish and did not seem aggressive. A few years back I caught a female of this species carrying eggs and she was very aggressive.
I've not heard of any aquarist bitten by a blue ring. I've had H. lunulata lunge and try to bite a couple of times when moving them into and out of experimental set-ups, but I aways make sure that I have on gloves and or a net. The cloest call I can remember came when one decide to escape from its tank and quickly climbed up the wall to the top edge of the tank. I had another blue-ring in a net in one hand and the urge was to take my free hand and knock the animal back into the water before it came over the edge. I caught myself just as I was reaching for it.
I have twice felt the effects of the TTX toxin, both times when removing dead animals from shipping bags. I think the saliva that contains the TTX leaks out of dead animals. I don't know if it can pass through the skin or enters through a wound, but I definitely had some tingling in my hand and arm.
Roy
I've not heard of any aquarist bitten by a blue ring. I've had H. lunulata lunge and try to bite a couple of times when moving them into and out of experimental set-ups, but I aways make sure that I have on gloves and or a net. The cloest call I can remember came when one decide to escape from its tank and quickly climbed up the wall to the top edge of the tank. I had another blue-ring in a net in one hand and the urge was to take my free hand and knock the animal back into the water before it came over the edge. I caught myself just as I was reaching for it.
I have twice felt the effects of the TTX toxin, both times when removing dead animals from shipping bags. I think the saliva that contains the TTX leaks out of dead animals. I don't know if it can pass through the skin or enters through a wound, but I definitely had some tingling in my hand and arm.
Roy
shermlock
New member
Roy,
What does a stomatopodiatrist do? I know that stomapod is a crustacean but do you study them in the pursuit of medicine or is the occupation title a joke? When I saw your earlier posts, I just figured "pod watcher" but now with the blue ring information, I am beginning to think there really is such a thing as a stomatopodiatrist.
Scott
What does a stomatopodiatrist do? I know that stomapod is a crustacean but do you study them in the pursuit of medicine or is the occupation title a joke? When I saw your earlier posts, I just figured "pod watcher" but now with the blue ring information, I am beginning to think there really is such a thing as a stomatopodiatrist.
Scott
Gonodactylus
Premium Member
Shermlock,
I am a professor at the University of California, Berkeley. My areas of interest are marine invertebrate behavior. I have studied stomatopods for nearly 40 years and became interested in blue-rings and other pygmey octopus a few years ago. Much of our research centers on the stomatopod visual system, the evolution of mating systems, communication, and biomechanics. While much of the work is pure basic research, we have been funded over the years to provide information on the use of UV and polarized light underwater as well as developing robots that can operate in the intertidal.
Stomatopodiatrist was a gag title that I coined a few years back. Stomatopod means "mouth foot". Podiatrists study feet so I figured I could be a stomatopodiatrist.
Roy
I am a professor at the University of California, Berkeley. My areas of interest are marine invertebrate behavior. I have studied stomatopods for nearly 40 years and became interested in blue-rings and other pygmey octopus a few years ago. Much of our research centers on the stomatopod visual system, the evolution of mating systems, communication, and biomechanics. While much of the work is pure basic research, we have been funded over the years to provide information on the use of UV and polarized light underwater as well as developing robots that can operate in the intertidal.
Stomatopodiatrist was a gag title that I coined a few years back. Stomatopod means "mouth foot". Podiatrists study feet so I figured I could be a stomatopodiatrist.
Roy
friendtothefish
New member
wow guys, catching blue rings!!!! where and how, Ive been diving for 9years and ive only seen one octo and i dont know what kind it was, how are you guys catching them???
crimson156
In Memoriam
if u get bitten by the blue ring it causes temporary paralysis, can't move a muscle(this includes your diaphragm)
as long as u have someone to give cpr or put u on a ventalator u'll be fine, but if not u suffocate because u can't breath, while all this is happening u r completly concious. and ya the venom is in the saliva, dunno how much gloves help cause they have beaks that could very well bite through em
as long as u have someone to give cpr or put u on a ventalator u'll be fine, but if not u suffocate because u can't breath, while all this is happening u r completly concious. and ya the venom is in the saliva, dunno how much gloves help cause they have beaks that could very well bite through em
...and has also cause death. Tetrodotoxin is nothing to fool around with, and the Blue Ring actually carries a toxin similiar to tetrodotoxin, called maculotoxin and the bite of a blue ring is reportably more deadly than any land based animal and one of the deadliest in the ocean (venom related). Blue rings carry enough maculotoxin to kill about 10-25 human adults, at a dose of only one milligram each- and if my memory serves correct, this is still the most potent natural toxin known. And yes- it can be absorbed through the skin via the water the octo is in, but generally only temporary mild effects have been reported.
I love the blue ringed octopus and have studied it extensively. I have considered getting one for many years for a dedicated tank. When I had children however, I decided it simply wasn't worth the risk (picture the octo getting out of the tank and my son getting interested-- simply not worth it).
If you do decide to get one, DO NOT handle it whatsoever. It's bite is small and generally painless and can go undetected until symptoms set in- by then, you may not be able to react (actually- it's only a few seconds anyway). As a precaution, have someone present with you trained in CPR and provide them with the instructions to notify 911 of tetrodotoxin/maculotoxin poisoning immediately if you are bitten.
As a side note, TTX has also been used (specifically crushed puffer fish) in the makings of potions used by witch doctors to make a person appear dead. The person would be buried and then the witch doctor would break in the tomb, steal the "corpse" and wait for the effects to wear off and claim to have risen the dead. Oceanic puffer fish have a much lower dosage of TTX, but still can be deadly. Tank raised puffers do not have TTX because they do not feed on the fish in the Tetraodontidae familiy like the oceanic one do. TTX is also thought to be a possibility for the origin of the "zombie" phenomenon.
I love the blue ringed octopus and have studied it extensively. I have considered getting one for many years for a dedicated tank. When I had children however, I decided it simply wasn't worth the risk (picture the octo getting out of the tank and my son getting interested-- simply not worth it).
If you do decide to get one, DO NOT handle it whatsoever. It's bite is small and generally painless and can go undetected until symptoms set in- by then, you may not be able to react (actually- it's only a few seconds anyway). As a precaution, have someone present with you trained in CPR and provide them with the instructions to notify 911 of tetrodotoxin/maculotoxin poisoning immediately if you are bitten.
As a side note, TTX has also been used (specifically crushed puffer fish) in the makings of potions used by witch doctors to make a person appear dead. The person would be buried and then the witch doctor would break in the tomb, steal the "corpse" and wait for the effects to wear off and claim to have risen the dead. Oceanic puffer fish have a much lower dosage of TTX, but still can be deadly. Tank raised puffers do not have TTX because they do not feed on the fish in the Tetraodontidae familiy like the oceanic one do. TTX is also thought to be a possibility for the origin of the "zombie" phenomenon.
Mariner
New member
Gonodactylus,
I am curious about what you've learned regarding the eye of the octopus. I remember reading many years ago (in elementary shcool I think), that the eye of the octopus is very near in structure and capability to the human eye. Woiuld you mind explaining in layman's terms what the similarities are, if any?
thanks,
Mariner
I am curious about what you've learned regarding the eye of the octopus. I remember reading many years ago (in elementary shcool I think), that the eye of the octopus is very near in structure and capability to the human eye. Woiuld you mind explaining in layman's terms what the similarities are, if any?
thanks,
Mariner
Gonodactylus
Premium Member
Both have a "camera" type eye where light enters through a pupil and is focused on a light sensitive layer of tissue, the retina. In our eye, the neurons connected to the receptor cells (rods and cones) run over the surface of the retina and leave the eye via the optic nerve. In octopus, the connecting neurons exit the back of the retina and are collected into a nerve bundle. Probably the main difference is that octopus cannot see color. They do not have the diversity of receptor types that we do that allows them to discriminate among different wavelengths. On the other hand, they can probably see polarized light and we can't.
Roy
Roy
RogueCorps
New member
We had Crissy Huffard speak at this last weekend's SEABay meeting here in the SF Bay Area. She's one of Roy's grad students and spoke about pygmy cephalopods to our club. The discussion was really interesting and she did mention blue rings a bit. She estimated that if you are bit by one and were able to be put on artificial respiration for 24 hours, you would have a 25% chance of survival.
Pretty scary stuff.
-R
Pretty scary stuff.
-R
