Terrence the Octopus

[astrobuckeye]

So not exactly fish breeding but there is a popular TikTok channel blowing up. A family decided to purchase a California Two Spot octopus for their son. The octopus laid eggs shortly after they got it. And very shockingly the mother is still alive and the eggs hatched. It's pretty interesting to watch. The user is TikToktopus.

Thought it might be of interest to this audience.

 

[Sophie"s mom]

So not exactly fish breeding but there is a popular TikTok channel blowing up. A family decided to purchase a California Two Spot octopus for their son. The octopus laid eggs shortly after they got it. And very shockingly the mother is still alive and the eggs hatched. It's pretty interesting to watch. The user is TikToktopus.

Thought it might be of interest to this audience.

Oh wow that is amazing! I will definitely be checking that out,

 

[BeanAnimal]

So not exactly fish breeding but there is a popular TikTok channel blowing up. A family decided to purchase a California Two Spot octopus for their son. The octopus laid eggs shortly after they got it. And very shockingly the mother is still alive and the eggs hatched. It's pretty interesting to watch. The user is TikToktopus.

Thought it might be of interest to this audience.

They don't (always) just fall over and die - I would assume that she is still headed toward a sooner than later demise.

 

[sfin52]

So not exactly fish breeding but there is a popular TikTok channel blowing up. A family decided to purchase a California Two Spot octopus for their son. The octopus laid eggs shortly after they got it. And very shockingly the mother is still alive and the eggs hatched. It's pretty interesting to watch. The user is TikToktopus.

Thought it might be of interest to this audience.

It would seem this species can lay eggs several times and they don't die after the first batch

 

[sfin52]

The Search for a Model Octopus That Won’t Die After Laying Its Eggs (Published 2022)

A lab in Massachusetts may have finally found an eight-armed cephalopod that can serve as a model organism and assist scientific research.

www.nytimes.com

 

[ralquist]

Very cool story, pretty amazing! Just watched them all from the beginning.

 

[SaltBabies]

I thought it was really cool when I saw this story. Would have loved a baby

 

[astrobuckeye]

I thought it was really cool when I saw this story. Would have loved a baby

Yeah. They seem so cute but definitely glad I'm not paying to fees them.

 

[alexinmadison]

I thought it was really cool when I saw this story. Would have loved a baby

Not sure if you're following along, but they haven't "rehomed" any of the babies and no organization(s) stepped up to offer to take any of them yet. The reached out to a bunch of aquariums and adjacent organizations for help but everyone said sorry and good luck. Because their TikTok account blew up, the press reached out and they did a bunch of interviews yesterday so maybe something will come of that. In the meantime, if you are serious about adopting one, I'd suggest reaching out the the family and putting in dibs. They have 50 of them... even if half live, it'll be tough to find homes for all.

 

[SaltBabies]

Not sure if you're following along, but they haven't "rehomed" any of the babies and no organization(s) stepped up to offer to take any of them yet. The reached out to a bunch of aquariums and adjacent organizations for help but everyone said sorry and good luck. Because their TikTok account blew up, the press reached out and they did a bunch of interviews yesterday so maybe something will come of that. In the meantime, if you are serious about adopting one, I'd suggest reaching out the the family and putting in dibs. They have 50 of them... even if half live, it'll be tough to find homes for all.

Oh I'm serious. I have a ton of tanks and can modify one or so to be octopus 'proof'. I am actually an armature breeder (not of octopus). I don't have TikTok. And they'd have to ship which can be problematic for BiMacs. I'd be willing to pay shipping though. I'd love 1-5 cause chances are a few would perish in shipping and I'd love at least 3 in hopes of a pair to try to continue the breeding. They are obviously small octopi since a small one gave birth. Often times if you get one from someplace else it is random brown octopus which can turn out to be large..

I also raise shrimp and have access to shore shrimp so feeding wouldn't be as expensive as some might think for me....
ETA:
It just doesn't seem unlikely I'd be able to hook up with them and make it happen. Also soon the BiMac forum will catch on....

I did reach out though. So we will see.

 

[Sophie"s mom]

They don't (always) just fall over and die - I would assume that she is still headed toward a sooner than later demise.

So to my understanding, the reason the die is because they refuse to leave the eggs / hatchlings to eat, so they effectively starve to death. So, to counter act this, Terrance's owners made sure she had a constant supply of food, which they di observe her eating.

 

[Sophie"s mom]

Oh I'm serious. I have a ton of tanks and can modify one or so to be octopus 'proof'. I am actually an armature breeder (not of octopus). I don't have TikTok. And they'd have to ship which can be problematic for BiMacs. I'd be willing to pay shipping though. I'd love 1-5 cause chances are a few would perish in shipping and I'd love at least 3 in hopes of a pair to try to continue the breeding. They are obviously small octopi since a small one gave birth. Often times if you get one from someplace else it is random brown octopus which can turn out to be large..

I also raise shrimp and have access to shore shrimp so feeding wouldn't be as expensive as some might think for me....
ETA:
It just doesn't seem unlikely I'd be able to hook up with them and make it happen. Also soon the BiMac forum will catch on....

I did reach out though. So we will see.

Very cool! I hope you are able to get a few of them.

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

So to my understanding, the reason the die is because they refuse to leave the eggs / hatchlings to eat, so they effectively starve to death. So, to counter act this, Terrance's owners made sure she had a constant supply of food, which they di observe her eating.

Yes and no - they do stop feeding and basically only tend to their eggs, but they don't die because they refuse to leave the eggs, it's actually a hormonal thing:

No - octopuses are semelparous creatures, meaning that after they mate (males) or lay eggs (females), they die.* More specifically, they stop eating, don’t move much, and slowly waste away (amongst a few other symptoms). They produce hormones upon laying eggs that cause them to do these things, so to prevent them from wasting away (and caring for the eggs), you have to remove the gland (called the optic gland) that produces the hormones.**

*Source:

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/7545324_Octopus_Senescence_The_Beginning_of_the_End

**Source:

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982222006613

 

[thrillreefer]

Terrence has gone mainstream! NYT link