Taiwanese scientists have hatched the eggs of Penghu Island octopuses under lab conditions, in a potential breakthrough for artificially breeding the endangered species.
The cephalopods, designated octopus sp. TW-10 — which researchers in 2006 identified as a previously undocumented species — is threatened by population decline from overfishing, the National Penghu University of Science and Technology said in a statement last week.
The miniature octopuses are a scientific mystery, famous for being seen almost exclusively during spawning, which takes place between March 29 and April 12, said Lee Meng-fang (李孟芳), an associate professor of aquaculture at the university.
Photo courtesy of Lee Meng-fang
The species’ short lifespan of about a year and its female members’ habit of retreating into the ocean’s depths immediately following mating make the octopuses difficult to observe or study, he said.
The program to breed the octopuses in captivity, which took a decade to achieve results, utilized specimens captured during the spring spawning season, he said.
Female octopuses of the species carry only about 100 of the tiny, 16mm-long eggs, compared with other small cephalopods that lay thousands of eggs at a time, Lee said.
No eggs were documented until the Penghu branch of the Fisheries Research Institute found four caught in the filter of a tank, he added.
Female octopuses of the species carry inseminated eggs internally for between three and four months, then lay clutches of eggs that they protect for three more months, he said, adding that this gestation period takes up almost half of the octopuses’ life cycle.
The research found that female octopuses are highly sensitive to light and other interference when guarding their eggs, often preferring to dispose of the eggs if they are disturbed, he said.
This suggests that light pollution in the seas around Penghu might have contributed to the decline of the octopus population, Lee said.
The study produced 30 octopus larvae, which matured rapidly and attached themselves to the simulated ocean floor as soon as they hatched, bypassing the planktonic phase of normal octopods, he said.
Preliminary success achieved in the captive breeding program could allow the octopuses to be farmed throughout their lifecycle for food, similar to the sea urchins currently being cultivated in Penghu, he said.
LOUD AND PROUD Taiwan might have taken a drubbing against Australia and Japan, but you might not know it from the enthusiasm and numbers of the fans Taiwan might not be expected to win the World Baseball Classic (WBC) but their fans are making their presence felt in Tokyo, with tens of thousands decked out in the team’s blue, blowing horns and singing songs. Taiwanese fans have packed out the Tokyo Dome for all three of their games so far and even threatened to drown out home team supporters when their team played Japan on Friday. They blew trumpets, chanted for their favorite players and had their own cheerleading squad who dance on a stage during the game. The team struggled to match that exuberance on the field, with
Whether Japan would help defend Taiwan in case of a cross-strait conflict would depend on the US and the extent to which Japan would be allowed to act under the US-Japan Security Treaty, former Japanese minister of defense Satoshi Morimoto said. As China has not given up on the idea of invading Taiwan by force, to what extent Japan could support US military action would hinge on Washington’s intention and its negotiation with Tokyo, Morimoto said in an interview with the Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times) yesterday. There has to be sufficient mutual recognition of how Japan could provide
UPDATED TEST: The new rules aim to assess drivers’ awareness of risky behaviors and how they respond under certain circumstances, the Highway Bureau said Driver’s license applicants who fail to yield to pedestrians at intersections or to check blind spots, or omit pointing-and-calling procedures would fail the driving test, the Highway Bureau said yesterday. The change is set to be implemented at the end of the month, and is part of the bureau’s reform of the driving portion of the test, which has been criticized for failing to assess whether drivers can operate vehicles safely. Sedan drivers would be tested regarding yielding to pedestrians and turning their heads to check blind spots, while drivers of large vehicles would be tested on their familiarity with pointing-and-calling
A Taiwanese man apologized on Friday after saying in a social media post that he worked with Australia to provide scouting reports on Taiwan’s team, enabling Australia’s victory in this year’s World Baseball Classic (WBC), saying it was a joke and that he did not hold any position with foreign teams or Taiwan’s sports training center. Chen Po-hao (陳柏豪) drew the rage of many Taiwan baseball fans when he posted online on Thursday night, claiming credit for Australia’s 3-0 win over Taiwan in the opening game for Pool C, saying he worked as a physical therapist with the national team and
RSS