At the Aquarium of the Pacific, in Long Beach, California, Ghost, the giant Pacific octopus, has laid eggs and entered the final stage of her life cycle, senescence. Senescence (aging and decline of life) begins when a female lays eggs and devotes the rest of her life to caring for them. At this time she neglects her own basic needs, including eating to care for the eggs.
For males, the senescence occurs after mating because the optic gland becomes highly active, triggering the process of senescence leading to starvation and their vulnerability to predators and disease.
The octopus behaves the same way whether or not the eggs are fertilized. Caring for the eggs is a natural process that occurs in the wild.
Ghost will keep the eggs clean, free them from fungi, bacteria and algae.
For the safety of the animals and to prevent early senescence, octopuses are not paired with a mate. They can be very aggressive and even lethal to each other.
Ghost’s eggs are unfertilized. The giant Pacific octopus life spans an average of four to five years, and while it is not known how old Ghost is, scientists have based her weight and her size to approximate her age.
Octopus can lay thousands of eggs, and it is unrealistic to expect an aquarium to house and care for thousands of babies and to find homes for all of them.
She is a wonderful octopus and has made an eight-armed impression on all of our hearts. In the coming days, she will be moved behind the scenes for the remainder of her life.
Ghost has been at the aquarium for more than a year. She arrived in May 2024 from a “carefully vetted collector using humane and sustainable collection procedures.”
Since her arrival, Ghost has received hand-prepared seafood meals, individualized activities and habitat, as well as the finest veterinary care available.
Check out her check up: (weigh in)
Ghost will spend the final days of her life doing what nature intended, and she will be surrounded by all the humans she has come to know and love.
On the Aquarium of the Pacific’s Facebook page, there has been an outpouring of love and concern.
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