Nautilus pompilius

Linnaeus, 1758

Chambered Nautilus

Range: Western Pacific Ocean: Australia, Japan and Micronesia.

Size: 8 - 10 inches (20 - 25 cm)

Natural Environment: During daylight hours, the Nautilus spends its time at or near the bottom areas of deep, 1500 feet (450 m) coral reef slopes, and then migrates upward to about 300 feet (90 m) to seek prey during evening hours.

General Husbandry: Rarely seen in the trade.

I know of only one hobbyist many years ago that successfully maintained several nautiluses. He did so in a large Hex-shaped tank and kept the tank somewhat shaded during the day when he was at work. Upon getting home, a small fluorescent lamp was lit above the tank. It was thought this would signaled feeding time, yet as time passed it seems these animals had a keen sense of smell and by placing some food in the water they would slowly rise to the top of the water where these slow swimmers were 'handfed' pieces of shrimp and fish flesh. Their small tentacles, up to 90 per specimen, do not have suckers such as what octopus have, but do have grooves and ridges that are capable of gripping food items. Since they waste little energy, they require feeding only once per month.

The goal of the above mention hobbyist was to breed this species, however, I lost contact with him before he succeeded. Nevertheless, it takes about 5 years for the nautilus to reach sexual maturity, and similar to cuttlefish and octopus, the male uses its tentacles to hold the female while a modified arm transfers a sperm package to the female's mantle cavity. The female then attaches one leathery covered egg to a hard surface where it remains for about 8 - 12 months before a baby nautilus of about 1 inch (2.5 cm) emerges already having 4 chambers to control its buoyancy. Adults can have more than 30 chambers, and attain 8 - 10 inches (20 - 25 cm) in diameter and can live for 10 - 20 years.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Mollusca

Class: Cephalopoda

Order: Nautilida

Family: Nautilidae

Genus: Nautilus

FYI: And let me thank zipcodezoo.com and Wikipedia.org for some of the above information, as I've had no personal experience with this interesting creature.

Experience Level: Expert

Diet: Omniviore/Plankton feeder

Temperament: Peaceful

Aquarium Environment: Reef or fish-only aquarium

Coral Safe: Yes

Fish Safe: Yes

Invertebrate Safe: Yes

Acclimation Time: 30 minutes+

Aquarium Hardiness: Moderate

Calcium (Ca): 380 - 430 mg/l

Alkalinity: 2.5 - 3.0 meq/l

Phosphate (PO4): <0.05 mg/l

Magnesium (Mg): approx. 1350 mg/l (relate to specific gravity)

Strontium (Sr) 8 - 10 mg/l

Temperature Range: 72 - 83°F (23 - 28°C)

Minimum Tank Size: 200 gallons

Lighting: PAR 150

Water Movement: WM 2

Specific Gravity: 1.023 - 1.025

pH: 8.0 - 8.4

Iodine/Trace Elements Monitor/as necessary to maintain quality seawater.