Unfortunately I didn't order yet because Cephsource is out of captive raised Octopus Bimaculoides and won't return my calls or e-mails regarding availability.
My LFS says they will order me a caribbean species for $30, but many have said that its a tough time of year (winter) for both capture and shipping. This morning I spent a couple hours checking out the available species and sources at the following link:
http://is.dal.ca/~ceph/TCP/sources.html
Crayfish and goldfish are tempting because they are so readily available, and I did do that with my first octopus ten years ago. Rob Toonen (Biogeek) advises against feeding these freshwater animals to an Octopus. I think he said it is like eating a Big Mac every day - high in certain fats. Even our cephs have to be diet conscious.
Cocktail shrimp (I assume raw) are okay, but the Ceph may not take it initially if it was captured from the wild.
I have a large tank set up for mine - 75g w/ live rock - with a 30g sump and a skimmer for oxygen production. I would be really concerned about a 10g because they need room to roam, need highly oxygenated water, and create alot of waste. My original was in a 30g tank, which seemed about right.
Apparently you don't always get a O. joubini if you order one because they are confused with other species. I am looking for a larger species, such as O. vulgaris or o. bimaculoides.
I just have live rock in the tank - small and large. I'm going to trust the octopus not to crush himself. They are smart and elastic. I am also going to hot glue two powerheads to the glass so that he doesn't pull them off the wall and spray everything.
What are you doing to seal in yours? I haven't decided on the lid yet, but it will probably involve acrylic cut perfectly and weighted or taped down. To my knowledge my first octopus never tried to escape and I had used the duct tape method.
Keep me posted!
Adam - Nice pictures. Is the Blue Ring yours?
[Edited by Rinaldi on 01-27-2001 at 07:30 AM]
