California Two-spot Octopus
From Freepedia
| California Two-spot Octopus | ||||||||||||||||
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| Octopus (Octopus) bimaculoides Pickford/McConnaughey, 1949 |
The California Two-spot Octopus (Octopus bimaculoides) is an octopus species that lives off the coast of California. One can identify the species by the circular blue eyespots on each side of its head. Due to their friendly temperament and relative hardiness, they are considered by most experts to make the best pet octopus. It is closely related to Verrill's Two-spot Octopus (Octopus bimaculatus).
Keeping one as a pet requires at least a 50 gallon tank. They require premium water quality, so preparing your tank water should take between one and three months to build up a proper [nitrate] waste cycle. They can be ordered through most aquarium shops, but this is usually very hit-or-miss depending on if their aquatic supplier managed to capture any. Even then, you can not be sure of the age, and it may only live for a few months. Captive-bred octopuses are a much better option because of this, and don't threaten wild octopuses from overhunting.
