Chambered Nautilus
- Thread starter RickIL
- Start date
OctoMonkey
New member
Well, guess you should have done your homework BEFORE buying it. Unfortunetly you have picked one of the hardest sea creatures to keep alive in captivity...
unless...
you have a tank at least 4 foot in depth?
A tank to itself
A chiller to keep the temperatue below 65deg F?
A constant supply of crabs and other crustaceans to feed it.
A dimmed lighting system then chances are it wont live long at all.
unless...
you have a tank at least 4 foot in depth?
A tank to itself
A chiller to keep the temperatue below 65deg F?
A constant supply of crabs and other crustaceans to feed it.
A dimmed lighting system then chances are it wont live long at all.
OctoMonkey, I agree the purchase was impulsive. I haven't made such an impulsive purchase in many, many years. However, the creature was living in a reef set-up eating only goldfish. It was constantly floating to the top of the tank without much control. Since being in my tank, it has made vast improvements. It moves around the tank with little difficulty, and no longer has the out of control buoyancy issues it had in the store tank. I don't have a tank that is 4 feet deep (mine is 36 inches deep), it is in it's own tank, the water is maintained around 65 degrees (actually what I've read said they can handle quite a range of temperatures - remember they swim to the reef during the evenings). It is eating fresh (frozen) crab legs, shrimp and it will even eat mysis - not to mention the very occasional gold fish. I found that it did not like bright aquarium lights, so I have only a single Actinic blue bulb on the tank. I've had it 4 weeks; the pet shop had it 3 weeks. Everyday it seems to be getting tamer. In fact, when I'm trying to do maintenance on the tank it keeps following my hand around.
OctoMonkey, looks like I've met most of your conditions, do you have any practical advice on keeping it in good health. Or, was your reply to simply point out that I should have let it die in the dealerââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢s tank? (FYI, the dealer has no intention of purchasing more and making them for sale. They found them too difficult to care for in the store.)
OctoMonkey, looks like I've met most of your conditions, do you have any practical advice on keeping it in good health. Or, was your reply to simply point out that I should have let it die in the dealerââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢s tank? (FYI, the dealer has no intention of purchasing more and making them for sale. They found them too difficult to care for in the store.)
Gonodactylus
Premium Member
I would like to be able to help with practical suggestions regarding this animal, but we don't even know what species it is. There are half a dozen nautilus and they do vary with respect to depth, temperature, etc. The only practical suggestion I can offer is that it is generally not a good idea to feed cephalopods goldfish. If you can, use cheap damsels or other small marine fish. There is a fair amount of information suggesting that goldfish do not provide proper nutrition.
The bigger issue here is the capture and importation of an animal that is under some pressure in the wild and that has a very poor prognosis in the typical aquarium. Octomonkey and and I have both posted on this in the past. Actually, at this point, the sale of live animals is only a very small part of the trade in these beasts. The vast majority are trapped for their shells and the collectors could care less whether they are alive or dead when they hit the surface - as long as the shell is in good condition..
Still, I really hope that people will pass on any nautilus they encounter for sale - alive or dead. The rationale of "It is already captured and will die anyway." will continue the pressure to collect them.
Roy
The bigger issue here is the capture and importation of an animal that is under some pressure in the wild and that has a very poor prognosis in the typical aquarium. Octomonkey and and I have both posted on this in the past. Actually, at this point, the sale of live animals is only a very small part of the trade in these beasts. The vast majority are trapped for their shells and the collectors could care less whether they are alive or dead when they hit the surface - as long as the shell is in good condition..
Still, I really hope that people will pass on any nautilus they encounter for sale - alive or dead. The rationale of "It is already captured and will die anyway." will continue the pressure to collect them.
Roy
OctoMonkey
New member
fair enough Rick, but posting a bit more information in your original post would have prevented most of my post, as you seem to already know all i have said.
Yes, as cruel as this may initially seem, it should have been left in the dealer's tank... I wish you the best of luck with your nautilus whatever species it is...
PS always use water with a near natural Salinity
Yes, as cruel as this may initially seem, it should have been left in the dealer's tank... I wish you the best of luck with your nautilus whatever species it is...
PS always use water with a near natural Salinity
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