Wednesday 7 August 2013

Common Octopus

Octopus vulgaris

Did you know that octopi have three hearts?

Looks
Octopi (AKA Octopuses or Octopodes) are sea-creatures that can come in many different sizes and colours. They have many ways to defend themselves from predators including the ability to squirt black ink, and doing so, swim away unnoticed. They are best known for their eight long, slimy tentacles, which are covered in tiny suckers that help the octopus to cling to rocks. These are also used to catch food (see Feeding). They can also change into a wide range of colours, and one species, the Mimic Octopus, can change its shape and colour to look like a different animal!
See a video here!

Feeding
Octopi use their tentacles to catch food such as crabs, scallops, snails, fish, turtles, crustaceans, and even other octopi. Then, using their strong beak, they kill and paralyse their prey so they can suck out its flesh. (Gross!)

Breeding
The male uses a special arm to transfer sperm inside the female. Sadly, only a few months after this procedure, the male octopus dies. About 7 months after the female has been fertilized, she produces approximately 200,000 eggs. The eggs, encased in little capsules, are attatched to a rock and guarded sleeplessly (and eat-lessly!) by the female for about 50 days. Indeed, after the babies have hatched, most octopus mothers die from exhaustion and lack of food. The hatched babies are defenseless and constantly hunted by predators, and in the end only about 1% of the clutch survive!

Habitat
Octopi make their homes in dark cracks and crevices on the ocean floor. They like warm, shallow water.

Also…Read about the strange protection strategies of the veined octopus (Amphioctopus marginatus) here

Octopi can regenerate a lost tentacle!