octo lifespan

[ahel]

doesnt it hurt you guys to see your octo's pass away??? how do you do it?

 

[Lutefisk]

I'm interested in octo's but their short lifespans are a bummer. Knowing how I am with my fish I'd really be bummed when an octo dies.

What types of lifespans have you been seeing. I'm reading between 1-2 years.

Paul

 

[VL]

12 - 16 month at a maximum is what I understand.

 

[technoshaman]

Octopus lifespan

Octopus lifespan

There are some cold water species that live a bit longer. Giant pacific comes to mind - they can live up to 3 years or so if I remember correctly.

The pygmy is about the shortest 6-8 months ?

What amazes me is how smart they are can you imagine what they might be able to learn if they had the lifespan of some of our fish (5-10-15-20) years?

 

[cephalopoder]

You kind of need to get your mind in the right frame before you start and come to grips that they have a short life span. I guess it depends on how much you let yourself get attached to them.
The comon octopus in the trade on average live any where from 3-9 months by the time there big enough to be sold. Of course this depends on species. Diet, water temp and quality all factor in too. In the wild they can live up to about 7 years for some arctic species. Most species average between 12-18 months.

 

[ahel]

how hard is it to get those arctic species??

 

[sideways]

no...the hard part is building an aquarium in your freezer

 

[technoshaman]

arctic octos

arctic octos

My guess is these are not collected at all unless for research.

 

[cephalopoder]

Batyhypolypus arcticus, a acrtic octopus is often caught by accident by fishermen dredging for scallops.
The only way to aquire one is to talk to a fisherman from new england and have them keep a eye out for one when they unload their nets. They live in very deep,cold waters and are hard to come by.