Which is better as a first cephalopoda an octopus or cuttlefish?

[KEVBO]

I was just given a used 20 gallon cuttlefish tank and want to put either an octopus or a cuttlefish in it. I have been in the hobby for a year and work at an lfs where i have cared for both these animals before. any input on which is better? thank you

 

[DominionDesign]

I have kept many Octopus but never a Cuttlefish so the info on them is all secondhand. Octopus are generally easy to keep as far as care goes, the difficult part is keeping them in the tank. They are also a short lived animal, about 2 years is average and a female will die as soon as she lays eggs. Cuttlefish, from my research, are more difficult to keep due to being prone to panic and running into the glass. Here is a site with alot on Ceph info:http://www.thecephalopodpage.org/
For any Cephalopod water quality must be excellent so make sure to have a stabil tank to begin with. Good luck!

 

[Catpicklesdog]

Cuttlefish need at least a 300gal tank as they need the swimming space.

personally I think they're better off in the wild.

I also wouldn't put an octopus in that size tank either.

Here's a link to Marine-geeks' thread about "Fluffy" her octopus which might help Fluffy was well known on AC

 

[marinemad]

i said 300g in chat!

 

[KEVBO]

at the lfs i work at they kept two tiny cuttles in the tank i am going to be using they lived for a long time. It never appeared that they were crammed do even the tiny ones like this need a 300 gallon?

 

[KEVBO]

on tonmo. com people have posted a 29 gallon is ok for a Sepia bandensis cuttlefish. Would a 20 gallon work for just one Sepia bandensis?

 

[BeelzeBob]

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2008-10/feature/index.php

Tank Size: Number of Adult Bandensis:
40 gallons 1-2
55 gallons 4
75 gallons 6
100+ gallons 8+

soo based on a new aricle in RKM, dwarf cuttles only need a 40 gallon tank

 

[Catpicklesdog]

Fantastic article there Bob.

I'd be no good with cuttlefish, I'd get too attached and be disappointed when it dies after only a year.

 

[cam191919]

it would be best to research another ceph...

 

[corinna]

hi Cam. I kept a n octopus for 7 months.He/she is now on loan to Sealife at Gardaland aquarium. Nobody told me they were difficult to keep,so I put him in a spare 30 gal tank with some live clams(vongole) and built him a hidey hole and he was fime, healthy, curious all the time I had him. After time he would take food from my hand;usually a piece of feshly-caught fish or a mussel.When I got him he was around an inch across, after 7 months he must have been 7 inches.Massively rewarding animal to care for.