On WORLD OCTOPUS DAY, we are diving deep into the brains (all nine of them) of the cephalopod that has both wondered — and bewildered — scientists for years.
Today, we are kicking off a new sea-son of giving with our Octo-ber OCEANS campaign, BRAIN WAVES (and as you might have already guessed, get ready for a whole lot of ocean-loving puns along the way)! All month long, learn about some mind-blowing ways our oceans are brilliant — and the many more reasons they need to stay so.
And because it’s also WORLD OCTOPUS DAY, there is perhaps no creature more fit to start us off on our ocean intelligence journey than the mysterious and mystifying octopus.
Let’s dive in!
The need-to-knows about octopuses
- A unique body: All octopuses have eight arms (which have a regenerative ability and allow them to taste), three hearts, and nine brains. But they have no bones and are made up of nearly all muscle.
- Sacrifice of love: Male octopuses die after mating. And females, in their final act, sacfrice their lives to care for their eggs (as many as of 400,000 of them) until they hatch — not eating or leaving their side for as long as 10 months.
- So much variety: There are over 300 species of octopus, and most of them prefer solitude. Although some scientists witnessed some octopuses displaying complex social behaviors — forming a city of their own, “Octopolis."
- Getting around: Octopuses are pretty fast — some can propel themselves as fast as 25 mph (40 km per hour) with their jet propulsion.
- A skilled feast: Octopuses feed on a variety of small sea creatures, including crabs, clams and even other octopuses. Most feed at night, and all have venom.
The wits and what-nots of octopuses
- All in the arm: Each of their arms have a bundle of neurons that allow the animal to sense and manipulate the world around. They can open shells, shift rocks, and, sometimes, throw objects.
- Masters of disguise: Octopuses are nature’s ultimate illusionists — with an extraordinary ability to hide in plain sight by squeezing and contracting pigment sacs. Not only can their camouflage allow them to blend easily in with their surroundings in as little as 200 milliseconds, but their superior smarts allow them to evade their enemies.
- Escape artists: Not only do their flexible bodies allow them to squeeze into a space only an inch (2.54 cm) in diameter, but their advanced visual systems and complex brains allow them to form mental maps — making them particularly good escape artists.
- Tool users and problem solvers: They can open jars and hack filtration systems, but some octopus have been found to use tools, including the highly intelligent coconut octopus.
- They are feelers: Not only do octopuses feel physical pain, but scientists believe they feel emotional pain too. Because of this, octopuses have been recognized as sentient beings.
There is still so much scientists don’t know about octopuses. But what is clear is that their world, as is also the reality for so many other marine animals, is changing. It’s imperative we help our OCEANS to protect the many marvelous minds who call these waters home.
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Keep our OCEANS brilliant this WORLD OCTOPUS DAY.
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