Juvenile pale octopus (Octopus pallidus) growth

The aim of this study was to assess how individual size-at-hatching and food consumption influences the growth of Octopus pallidus hatchlings reared under simulated seasonal temperature regimes in Tasmania.

Population structure and movement of Octopus maorum and Octopus pallidus, and predation on rock lobster

Samples of Octopus maorum and O. pallidus have been collected from the Eaglehawk fishery and as bycatch from southern rock lobster fishery to determine population structure and spatial and temporal trends. Tag recapture study of O. maorum and O. pallidus in Taroona reserve using PIT tags and movement study using acoustic tracking at Taroona reserve and Eaglehawk neck examine the temporal and spatial scales of movement and habitat use. Octopus tracked using VR2's (presence/absence data) and VRAP (triangulated positional data) at both sites.

Quantitative elemental imaging of octopus stylets using PIXE and the nuclear microprobe

By utilising targeted microprobe technology, the analysis of elements incorporated within the hard bio-mineralised structures of marine organisms has provided unique insights into the population biology of many species. As hard structures grow, elements from surrounding waters are incorporated effectively providing a natural ‘tag’ that is often unique to the animal’s particular location or habitat. The spatial distribution of elements within octopus stylets was investigated, using the nuclear microprobe, to assess their potential for determining dispersal and population structure in octopus populations. This was investigated in adult Octopus pallidus sourced from a commercial fishery in Tasmania.

Stylet elemental signatures indicate population structure in a holobenthic octopus species, Octopus pallidus

Targeted trace elemental analysis was used to investigate the population structure and dispersal patterns of the holobenthic octopus species Octopus pallidus. Multi-elemental signatures within the pre-hatch region of the stylet (an internal ‘shell’) were used to determine the common origins and levels of connectivity of individuals collected from 5 locations in Tasmania. To determine whether hatchling elemental signatures could be used as tags for natal origin, hatchling stylets from 3 of the 5 locations were also analysed.

The Fishery Biology and Population Dynamics of the pale octopus (Octopus pallidus)

The data was collected from 2 years of field sampling from the commerical octopus (Octopus pallidus) fishery in NW Tasmania in Bass Strait. The data consists of morphological, reproductive and ageing information.