Importance Score: 65 / 100 🔴
Dr. Clifford detailed the arduous realities of octopus ownership in his online posts, emphasizing the financial burden, sleep deprivation, and substantial property damage due to water, necessitating extensive repairs. He explicitly stated his intention was not to glamorize keeping a juvenile octopus, yet, counter to his efforts, he faced a surge of adoption requests for the hatchlings.
Vincent Nijman, a wildlife trade expert at Oxford Brookes University, specializing in social media’s impact on the exotic pet market, observed this phenomenon. He noted that publicizing something, even with cautionary advice against it, can inadvertently fuel demand. Nijman suggests this creates a ‘do as I say, not as I do’ perception among the public.
Hatchling Survival Challenges
Despite the influx of requests, Dr. Clifford, driven by ethical considerations, determined it was irresponsible to place the fragile marine animal hatchlings in private residences. He instead arranged for their transfer to established aquariums and universities once they matured sufficiently for transportation. On April 21st, he communicated that suitable placements had been secured for all the young octopuses.
Tragically, the following day, Terrance passed away. The family laid her to rest in their garden, near a group of trees whose trunks evoked the image of octopus arms for Cal.
The immediate priority became sustaining the remaining hatchlings until their scheduled relocation. However, their prospects were bleak; in their natural habitat, only a small percentage of octopus hatchlings typically reach maturity.
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Dr. Clifford reported a significant loss of approximately 20 hatchlings within the first month alone. Mortality factors included cannibalism and a temporary water chiller malfunction due to a power outage.
Dr. Clifford expressed growing concern about the potential reaction from his large and engaged online audience should further hatchling deaths occur. He described the burden of maintaining their survival as intensely oppressive.
A local reptile and breeding expert, with whom Dr. Clifford had formed a friendship, proved invaluable, assisting in the care and even temporarily housing the young octopuses during renovations at Dr. Clifford’s residence. Despite this collaborative effort, hatchling mortality persisted.