Releasing a giant pacific octopus 'The Dude'

Youngster Dan · 05/12/2012, 11:50 PM

Hi everyone, I tend to lurk more than anything but I thought this was worth sharing. It is a video of me and some friends releasing "The Dude" -- the best giant pacific octopus in the world.

Him and I have had an incredible time together, and it is sad to see an empty tank now. He has been extremely social, gregarious and all round great octopus.

He will be missed!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V57Df...ature=youtu.be

Later Dude.

shaggy · 05/13/2012, 07:47 PM

Very cool...

AquaticEngineer · 05/16/2012, 08:52 PM

Do you catch your own? I have one right now that I caught no bigger than a silver dollar, so I estimated it to be about 2 months out of the egg at most when I got him. He's now about 12" tip to tip and about 9 months old.

Youngster Dan · 05/18/2012, 09:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shaggy

Very cool...

Thank you

Quote:

Originally Posted by AquaticEngineer

Do you catch your own? I have one right now that I caught no bigger than a silver dollar, so I estimated it to be about 2 months out of the egg at most when I got him. He's now about 12" tip to tip and about 9 months old.

Yeah we just caught another one. I saw your post with your little guy, super cute.

sponger0 · 05/18/2012, 03:18 PM

Thats awesome. So did you catch this one when it was little?

Youngster Dan · 05/22/2012, 06:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sponger0

Thats awesome. So did you catch this one when it was little?

Yup, we caught him when he was around 9 lbs. When we released him he was over 50 lbs. They grow fast, that's for sure!

sponger0 · 05/23/2012, 06:13 AM

Thats awesome.......

Hoosierfan · 05/23/2012, 01:56 PM

How long did you have him? Do they grow fast?

Jeremy Blaze · 05/24/2012, 05:20 AM

So why are you guys catching them, growing them in captivity and re releaseing them?

Youngster Dan · 05/25/2012, 11:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hoosierfan

How long did you have him? Do they grow fast?

We had him for approximately 7 months. Yes - they grow very fast. I have heard that they are the most efficient carnivore at converting food into body mass. They live only around 3-5 years old and can reach up to 100lbs.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jeremy Blaze

So why are you guys catching them, growing them in captivity and re releaseing them?

They are caught to be displayed in a public aquarium. I feel like our exhibit is too small for a larger octopus, and we also want to avoid having an animal that is senescent. Hence - why we release them.

I understand that there are issues surrounding the release of captive animals back into the wild. That said, the Ocean Discovery Center only houses local species so there is limited chance of introduced pathogens etc upon release. I think this topic certainly warrants discussion however.

loismustdie0692 · 06/26/2012, 11:22 PM

Wow!! Awesome!!

rs30 · 06/27/2012, 03:39 PM

Thank 4 that made my day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

KrissiIZme · 07/01/2012, 03:30 PM

Awesome video! And I think the negative comments come from an uniformed person who means well. I have found that people will question almost anything that others do, especially when they don't understand or know enough about it. Shrug, there are far worse things happening to the environment than releasing an Octopus.

Youngster Dan · 07/05/2012, 05:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by loismustdie0692

Wow!! Awesome!!

Thanks

Quote:

Originally Posted by rs30

Thank 4 that made my day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It made my day too, that's for sure. Thank you

Quote:

Originally Posted by KrissiIZme

Awesome video! And I think the negative comments come from an uniformed person who means well. I have found that people will question almost anything that others do, especially when they don't understand or know enough about it. Shrug, there are far worse things happening to the environment than releasing an Octopus.

Thank you. Criticism is good, keeps you honest and makes sure you are on your toes!

thewire · 07/12/2012, 06:56 PM

i thought law prohibit releasing native species after been in capacity?

Youngster Dan · 07/13/2012, 04:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thewire

i thought law prohibit releasing native species after been in capacity?

We have to get a permit from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans first. As a part of this permit our vet has to check on the health of our GPO so that we aren't releasing sick animals.

havoc79 · 07/13/2012, 05:21 PM

very cool video the dude is awesome sorry you had to lose your bud but now he can find a octopus and make more dudes for ya ha

deangelr · 07/14/2012, 08:41 AM

Can GPOs be bred in captivity?

Youngster Dan · 07/14/2012, 10:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by havoc79

very cool video the dude is awesome sorry you had to lose your bud but now he can find a octopus and make more dudes for ya ha

Yeah, I still miss him - he was the best. Our current GPO is also pretty personable, not quite as active but he is getting better.

Quote:

Originally Posted by deangelr

Can GPOs be bred in captivity?

I haven't heard of anyone successfully breading them. Once hatched, baby GPOs are planktonic which for a host of reasons makes it very difficult to rear and have them survive for any length of time.

I believe there has been considerably more success with other species of octopus that have larger eggs which hatch into benthic babies.

AquaticEngineer · 08/25/2012, 01:16 PM

I got 2 more baby GPO's about a week ago

One went to a guy in CA but I still have the other little guy. He's about silver dollar size and eating crabs like crazy

bugs713 · 08/25/2012, 01:41 PM

Cool video!
You should post pictures and video more often, obviously a lot of people here interested in what you are doing and pics and video would be cool!

Youngster Dan · 09/08/2012, 03:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AquaticEngineer

I got 2 more baby GPO's about a week ago

One went to a guy in CA but I still have the other little guy. He's about silver dollar size and eating crabs like crazy

Nice!

Quote:

Originally Posted by bugs713

Cool video!
You should post pictures and video more often, obviously a lot of people here interested in what you are doing and pics and video would be cool!

Sounds good to me! I just snapped some video of me playing with our GPO. I will post it up later tonight.

Lwhite · 09/10/2012, 02:48 PM

Very Cool. Thanks for Sharing

Youngster Dan · 09/11/2012, 12:15 AM

I took a video playing with our current octopus. His name is Steve, and he is pretty cool too.

http://youtu.be/C86MZjodmiQ

bugs713 · 09/11/2012, 08:55 AM

Awesome, thanks!

05/12/2012, 11:50 PM	#1
Youngster Dan Registered Member Join Date: May 2009 Location: Victoria, Canada Posts: 18	Releasing a giant pacific octopus 'The Dude' Hi everyone, I tend to lurk more than anything but I thought this was worth sharing. It is a video of me and some friends releasing "The Dude" -- the best giant pacific octopus in the world. Him and I have had an incredible time together, and it is sad to see an empty tank now. He has been extremely social, gregarious and all round great octopus. He will be missed! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V57Df...ature=youtu.be Later Dude.

05/16/2012, 08:52 PM	#3
AquaticEngineer Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Damascus, OR. USA Posts: 251	Do you catch your own? I have one right now that I caught no bigger than a silver dollar, so I estimated it to be about 2 months out of the egg at most when I got him. He's now about 12" tip to tip and about 9 months old. __________________ 12 gallon Aquabella Wall Mounted NPS Tank 8 gallon Aqueon Coldwater Marine Tank COLDWATER MARINE AQUATICS Current Tank Info: 500+ Gallon Temperate/Coldwater holding system

05/24/2012, 05:20 AM	#9
Jeremy Blaze President LMAS Join Date: May 2003 Location: New Washington, IN Posts: 5,883	So why are you guys catching them, growing them in captivity and re releaseing them? __________________ Trust me my friend, the names are not important at all. I've own hundreds of different zoas and palys and don't know the name of a single one. In my opinion, they are a waste of valuable time. Mucho Reef

06/26/2012, 11:22 PM	#11
loismustdie0692 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2012 Posts: 15	Wow!! Awesome!! __________________ God is playing a comic to an audience that's afraid to laugh. Current Tank Info: 90 G reef tank, 15 G sump, Red Sea Skimmer, T5 Lighting 150lbs live rock. 1 Yellow tang, 3 blue Chromis, 1 Royal Gramma, Flame Angel, 2 cleaner shrimp, 2 emerald crabs, 3 peppermint shrimp and a bunch of turbo and narsicius snails.

07/14/2012, 08:41 AM	#18
deangelr Clown Whisperererer Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Austin, TX Posts: 1,095	Can GPOs be bred in captivity? __________________ Many Tanks.... ACROS, CLOWNS AND ANEMONES...

05/13/2012, 07:47 PM	#2
shaggy Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2001 Posts: 47	Very cool...

05/18/2012, 03:18 PM	#5
sponger0 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Virginia Beach Posts: 6,016	Thats awesome. So did you catch this one when it was little?

05/23/2012, 06:13 AM	#7
sponger0 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Virginia Beach Posts: 6,016	Thats awesome.......

05/23/2012, 01:56 PM	#8
Hoosierfan Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: B-Town, IN Posts: 55	How long did you have him? Do they grow fast?

06/27/2012, 03:39 PM	#12
rs30 Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2011 Posts: 60	Thank 4 that made my day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

07/01/2012, 03:30 PM	#13
KrissiIZme Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Apple Valley, CA Posts: 71	Awesome video! And I think the negative comments come from an uniformed person who means well. I have found that people will question almost anything that others do, especially when they don't understand or know enough about it. Shrug, there are far worse things happening to the environment than releasing an Octopus.

07/12/2012, 06:56 PM	#15
thewire Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Posts: 205	i thought law prohibit releasing native species after been in capacity?

07/13/2012, 05:21 PM	#17
havoc79 Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Tucson AZ. Posts: 64	very cool video the dude is awesome sorry you had to lose your bud but now he can find a octopus and make more dudes for ya ha

08/25/2012, 01:16 PM	#20
AquaticEngineer Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Damascus, OR. USA Posts: 251	I got 2 more baby GPO's about a week ago One went to a guy in CA but I still have the other little guy. He's about silver dollar size and eating crabs like crazy __________________ 12 gallon Aquabella Wall Mounted NPS Tank 8 gallon Aqueon Coldwater Marine Tank COLDWATER MARINE AQUATICS Current Tank Info: 500+ Gallon Temperate/Coldwater holding system

08/25/2012, 01:41 PM	#21
bugs713 In-A-Gadda-Divita! Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Apache Junction, AZ - USA Posts: 2,028	Cool video! You should post pictures and video more often, obviously a lot of people here interested in what you are doing and pics and video would be cool! __________________ ░▒▓█▄▀▄▀▄█There's No Place Like 127.0.0.1█▄▀▄▀▄█▓▒░

09/10/2012, 02:48 PM	#23
Lwhite Custom User Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Fargo, ND Posts: 216	Very Cool. Thanks for Sharing __________________ Keep Calm Lounge On -Luke Current Tank Info: 40g Breeder Mixed Reef

09/11/2012, 12:15 AM	#24
Youngster Dan Registered Member Join Date: May 2009 Location: Victoria, Canada Posts: 18	I took a video playing with our current octopus. His name is Steve, and he is pretty cool too. http://youtu.be/C86MZjodmiQ

09/11/2012, 08:55 AM	#25
bugs713 In-A-Gadda-Divita! Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Apache Junction, AZ - USA Posts: 2,028	Awesome, thanks! __________________ ░▒▓█▄▀▄▀▄█There's No Place Like 127.0.0.1█▄▀▄▀▄█▓▒░