Chambered Nautilus

[chopsuey]

Does anyone have one or has any one every had one? I recently got back from Hawaii and the aquarium on Waikiki Beach has some in a tank. They are very interesting Inverts. I remember a long time ago seeing these for sale at a LFS but have not seen them since. Are they just too hard to keep or are they a protected species?

 

[technoshaman]

Hard to keep - need cool water and really don't need any light to speak of. Also they are under heavy pressure from ornamental shell collectors who kill them by the tens of thousands for the shell trade.

Additionally they are not nearly as interesting as an octo - they just kind of hang out. Probably best left to public aquariums , researchers or extremely dedicated hobbyists - other than that leave them in the ocean.

 

[johnnybravo234]

They used to have them at mystic where I volunteered. They are cool looking but they dont really do too much. You are better off with a cuttlefish or octi.

 

[ReefRascals]

They're also like rats and will chew on anything they can.

 

[chopsuey]

Thanks peeps for all the responses. I think I will leave them to the public aquariums. They are cool though..

 

[Random Aquarist]

Since they move by rocketing off with water, they might break your aquarium if the glass/acrylic wasn't thick.

 

[my"reef"space]

ive seen those in my LFS a while back. They had a few of them too. these things look awesome