“Some would crawl up the containers, out of the water, and just dry out. He found that these intelligent, curious animals need more than space, food, and clean water. “It can cost a couple thousand dollars just to get set up," says Reyna Bueno, of Barrier Reef Aquariums, a leading Seattle-area vendor. The service uses the volume of shipments received to determine staff needs and resources at the nation’s ports of entry. The giant Pacific octopus may between three to five years in the wild. Most species live only one to two years, and a newly imported octopus may have just weeks left. Without mating the octopus may survive up to five years, and Giant Pacific octopus have been found to reach a weight of 600 pounds, and an estimated width of over 31 feet, But the average size is only 100 pounds and 3m, still weighing in as the largest species of octopus. The female would die soon after the hatchlings come out of the eggs. They have relatively short lifespans with some only living for 6 months the giant Pacific octopus can live for approximately 5 years. For octopuses, mating is a pretty subdued affair. But, Ross adds, some conspicuous aquarium keepers accept the high costs and turnover as the price of displaying such charismatic creatures: “They think of these animals as cut flowers.". They’re master escape artists, able to slop through thin cracks and out of all but the most securely sealed tanks—one of many traits that make them uniquely challenging and costly animals to keep. Find out about these and other octopus facts. This may be in part because some aquarium shops have stopped what Rich Ross, a former senior biologist at San Francisco's Steinhart Aquarium calls “supermarket-style” stocking of exotic pets. This may reflect a lack of information—for example, in the case of the mimic octopus. “I get asked all the time, ‘Can you get octopuses?’” says Jeff Slemp, proprietor of a store called Cuttlefish and Corals Sustainable Saltwater Aquariums, in Portland, Oregon. During mating, he inserts the rope of sperm, called a spermatophore, into the female’s oviduct. Average Lifespan: … In Seattle, the artists, writers, musicians, and scientists of the Cephalopod Appreciation Society gather each summer to celebrate octopuses and their squid and cuttlefish cousins in image, word, and song. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), by agreement with the Fish and Wildlife Service, obtained the invoices for imports of aquarium species during three complete years (2008, 2009, and 2011) and parts of 2004 and 2005. Sometimes, an individual would spend in a cave for weeks, crawling out only when hungry. (See what happened at the most recent CITES conference.). The giant Pacific octopus is the biggest octopus species. Your email address will not be published. Scientists have … © 1996-2015 National Geographic Society, © 2015- Its aggressiveness and predatory behavior as envisioned by authors like Jules Verne is the stuff of legend, but the giant squid does exist. They typically live a solitary life, unless it is the time for reproduction, and are primarily nocturnal creatures, moving around at night to hunt for food. It may come as a surprise for many, but the death of these creatures is related to their reproduction process. The lifespan of giant Pacific octopuses is characterized by a fast growth period that continues throughout its entire life of 4 to 5 years. “I’ve seen them in pet shops and home aquaria where owners didn’t know what it was,” Slemp says. Giant pacific octopus has fat and round-shaped head. As with most creatures, the octopus's main purpose in life is to reproduce. Their arms span up to 4.3 m or 14 ft. In some countries, they are valued as seafood, being especially popular in Asian and Mediterranean cuisines. Those almost certainly weren’t the only blue rings that came in. He thinks keeping blue rings is “a really bad idea” and refuses to sell them. They’re big. A male can mate with several females, but the female can reproduce only once in their lifetime. Weight: Generally, 110 to 150 pounds for a matured individual. Eggs are coated in chorion, and the female attache… ", University of Lethbridge animal psychologist Jennifer Mather, a pioneering researcher into octopus cognition and personality, sees octopuses as "the poster child for invertebrate animal welfare"—worthy of the same rights as animals that look more like us. During this time, life is too hectic, and thousands of them fall prey to different creatures of the sea. The U.S. The Giant Octopuses dwell in the cold temperate coastal waters up to a depth of 330 feet or more in the kelp forests, rocky areas, and caves. The Giant Pacific Octopus (or, the North Pacific Giant Octopus) is the world’s largest and longest-living octopus species that are known for their high intelligence. To make up for its relatively short lifespan, the octopus is extremely prolific. With an average lifespan of 3 years, the giant pacific octopus is the longest living octopus on the planet. The growing public fascination with octopuses doesn’t seem to have translated into surging sales—so far, anyway. That’s partly because records of imports of cephalopods to the United States are spotty and out of date. The short life span and reclusive tendencies of this species have proved a challenge for researchers. Every year, up to 3,500 tons of these octopuses are caught in North America, where fishing and consuming octopus is not a taboo. The octopus lifespan is relatively short, with some living lives that last only six months, but it varies depending on species. A slew of research papers, popular books, magazine articles, and nature documentaries celebrates their improbable intelligence (a mollusk with a vertebrate-size brain and problem-solving ability! And they worry about the danger posed to naïve hobbyists by the alluring, but lethally venomous, blue-ringed octopus. © 2020 (Animal Spot). Those that manage to survive and attain about 5 grams of body weight begin to settle at the bottom of the ocean. The size record is held by a specimen that was 30 feet across and weighed more than 600 pounds. The female would hang the eggs in many strands from the roof of a cave deep down in the ocean. The female Giant Pacific Octopus is an example of genuine parental care, guarding the eggs for almost seven months until they hatch. The length of time that passes between hatching, reproduction and death varies among octopus species. Blue rings’ lethality, coupled with their dazzling eponymous markings, exert a powerful allure on some aquarium aficionados—“daredevils,” Slemp calls them. “Sometimes they hitchhike along on [chunks of coral reef], and you don’t even know you have one,” Wood says. Wunderpus and mimic octopuses are the ultimate quick-change artists, hiding in plain sight by impersonating everything from rocks and seaweed to sea snakes and lionfish. Any downturn also reflects the efforts of Wood and other experts to educate hobbyists and vendors about the costs and hazards of keeping these demanding super-mollusks. Both the sexes can breed year round. Did you know that giant Pacific octopuses get "attached" to their aquarists—in a good way? Description. Some would eat their own arms,” he says. But Ross acknowledges that it hasn’t been easy to rally the industry; two previous efforts failed. The adult giant Pacific octopus weighs around 33 lbs. All rights reserved. However, they are also caught for public aquariums and as bait in other fisheries. Populations of giant Pacific octopus are thought to be stable in the north Pacific and increased popularity in the human food market has increased their value as by … Incredible Adaptations. The range of this species range extends throughout the Pacific Ocean, starting from the south of California to Alaska, stretching to the west up to the Aleutian Islands and Japan. The store’s receptionist hung up abruptly when I identified myself and asked about their blue rings. Octopuses in general usually live no more than a year! By the time the young ones are a year old, they grow to around 2 pounds. Slemp isn't opposed on principle to keeping these big-brained, unusually smart mollusks as pets, but he won’t sell octopuses to just anyone. It would lay the eggs in a safe den, with a single egg being the size of a rice grain, while the total count can range from anything between 18,000 and 74,000 (with an average of 50,000). Octopus are mollusks, which means they are from the same phylum (or family) as slugs, snails, cuttlefish and … A few species have fla… Blue-ring bites occur each year in Australia, but timely, vigorous artificial respiration usually prevents fatalities; only three have been confirmed during the past century, none involving aquariums. An octopus's garden The adult giant Pacific octopus eats a wide assortment of seafood including crabs, clams and other mussels. After mating, a female will lay up to 74,000 eggs or more in a deep den or cave and live there for seven months watching over them. These cephalopods are polygamous. During their life span, many octopus … Rhyne's team found many discrepancies between the import declarations and the more detailed invoices. In addition to their high prices and expensive diets—heavy on live crabs and shrimp— octopuses need large, escape-proof tanks with ample hiding places, unassailable fixtures to withstand their powerful arms and inquisitive tampering, and no fish or other companions (they'll eat them). Giant Pacific Octopus Facts for Kids. The giant Pacific octopus is a very intelligent animal that can learn to open jars, play with toys and interact with — and even recognize — its handlers. How many hearts does an octopus have? Reproduction. Biologist Rich Ross, who once worked in the commercial aquarium trade, proposes a private-sector solution to the information drought: “a cooperative of responsible saltwater aquarium dealers” that could both track the trade and promote sustainable practices. Another celebrated octopus presents a different concern. Creating Pacific Octopuses For Enteroctopus dofleini, reproduction is the ultimate purpose in life. Many other octopuses go through a lifespan in one year, from egg to end of life. They can protect them by changing their colors and patterns so accurately that they can blend themselves with the environment, including the minutely-detailed corals, rocks, and plants on the seabed. The giant Pacific octopus is considered to be long-lived compared to other species, with lifespans typically 3–5 years in the wild. On the very first day of birth, the hatchlings would have 14 suckers in each of their eight arms to help them feed on tiny planktons floating in the ocean water. The adult or relatively larger octopuses practically do not have predators. Once the octopus reaches adulthood, it will eventually get the urge to mate. Size: The average length of an adult is about 15-16 feet across, which might as well be larger. They quickly became the darlings of the nature programs. When he began his research, he kept his octopuses in bare containers. “We have to make sure they have the background, make sure they have the knowledge to treat the things that pop up.". Image from Wikimedia Commons. One import of a mimic was recorded in 2008, two in 2009, and 30 in 2011, the last year available. Which creature has three hearts, eight arms and a doughnut shaped brain? During this time, it leads a solitary existence, breeding only one time. One of the most persistent myths regarding octopus and squids is that of the giant squid -- a massive creature who sinks ships and feasts on humans. Such traits make octopuses stars of the page and screen. This was a potentially lethal blue-ringed octopus that my unsuspecting daughter had handled just minutes earlier.". “Reading all the articles out there, people see themselves in these animals,” says a salesman at one leading marine-animal importer, who asked not to be named because he spoke without authorization. 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