A multilevel approach to examining cephalopod growth using Octopus pallidus as a model

Many aspects of octopus growth dynamics are poorly understood, particularly in relation to sub-adult or adult growth, muscle fibre dynamics and repro-somatic investment. The growth of 5 month old Octopus pallidus cultured in the laboratory was investigated under three temperature regimes over a 12 week period: seasonally increasing temperatures (14-18°C); seasonally decreasing temperatures (18-14°C); and a constant temperature mid-way between seasonal peaks (16°C). Differences in somatic growth at the whole-animal level, muscle tissue structure and rate of gonad development were investigated. Continuous exponential growth was observed, both at a group and at an individual level, and there was no detectable effect of temperature on whole-animal growth rate. Juvenile growth rate (from 1 to 156 days) was also monitored prior to the controlled experiment; exponential growth was observed, but at a significantly faster rate than in the older experimental animals, suggesting that O. pallidus exhibit a double-exponential two-phase growth pattern. There was considerable variability in size-at-age even between individuals growing under identical thermal regimes. Animals exposed to seasonally decreasing temperatures exhibited a higher rate of gonad development compared with animals exposed to increasing temperatures; however, this did not coincide with a detectable decline in somatic growth rate or mantle condition. The ongoing production of new mitochondria-poor and mitochondria-rich muscle fibres (hyperplasia) was observed, indicated by a decreased or stable mean muscle fibre diameter concurrent with an increase in whole-body size. Animals from both seasonal temperature regimes demonstrated higher rates of new mitochondria-rich fibre generation relative to those from the constant temperature regime, but this difference was not reflected in a difference in growth rate at the whole-body level. This is the first study to record ongoing hyperplasia in the muscle tissue of an octopus species, and provides further insight into the complex growth dynamics of octopus.