INTRODUCTION
The octopus is a cephalopod mollusc of the order Octopoda. There are about 300 octopod species, of which more than 100 are in the genus Octopus.
Octopods make up over one-third of the total number of living cephalopods. Other cephalopods include squid, and cuttlefish.
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| Common octopus By albert kok - ma photo, Wikipedia Commons |
The standard pluralized form of "octopus" in the English language is "octopuses" although the Ancient Greek plural "octopodes" has also been used historically.
Octopuses are considered to be one of the most intelligent marine species. Their brain is the largest and most advanced of any invertebrate.
It is believed that an octopus's memory and learning capability can be compared in complexity to that of advanced vertebrates - Octopuses have been known to undo child proof tops on medicine bottles to get at food.
Octopuses are good mimics. Some imitate other dangerous animals like sea snakes and lionfish.
Octopuses have been seen eating their arms as a result of a neurplogical disease.
When an octopus' arm is severed, the arm will continue to search for food – Then it will try to feed the mouth it doesn't have.
They eat mostly crabs and some fish. Some species of octopuses eat other octopuses.
In his History Of Animals, Aristotle remarked that when the octopus comes into proximity with small fish, it might change its color to resemble surrounding stones and that it reacts in a similar way when alarmed.
The southern sand octopus shoot jets of water into the sand below it, creating a pit of quicksand to escape from predators.
All octopuses are venomous. To kill their prey they drill through the prey's shell and inject their venom into their body using their beak.
Although all octopuses are venomous, only the blue-ringed octopus is harmful to humans.
A female octopus can lay clutches of about 100,000 eggs, however, only a handful will survive to adulthood.
A female Giant Pacific Octopus quits eating and spends six months slowly dying as she tends to and protects her eggs.
The longest known brooding period for any species on the planet goes to the Graneledone boreopacifica, an octopus that guards its eggs for an astounding 4.5 years.
Octopuses have been observed acquiring shiny objects and stones and planting them around the sea bed like a garden. The song "Octopus’s Garden" by the Beatles was inspired by the captain of a boat informing Ringo Starr of this fact while on vacation in Sardinia.
A baby octopus is about the size of a flea when it is born.
An Octopus consists of just a head and tentacles. Therefore his stomach, testicles etc are in his head.
The neurons in an octopus are not concentrated in the brain - two thirds of them are located in the tentacles meaning that each individual tentacle acts autonomously and independently of the brain. However, an octopus can exert precise control over a tentacle when need be through eyesight alone.
An octopus actually has six arms and two legs, not eight legs. They use their rearmost tentacles to push off from the surface of the sea bed before propelling themselves through the water with the other limbs.
Octopuses are the only animal that walk without any rhythm or pattern at all, just random movements that propel it forward.
An octopus is able to squeeze through a hole the size of a dime.
An octopus has three hearts. Two hearts are used to pump blood to each of the octopus' lungs and the third pumps blood throughout the body.
Octopus skin can change color 177 times an hour.
Heavyweight boxer Tony 'Two Ton' Galento was a colorful and controversial figure in boxing, and he was always up for a publicity stunt. In 1946, he accepted a bet to fight an octopus with boxing gloves on its tentacles. The fight took place at the Steel Pier in Atlantic City, New Jersey on August 5, 1946.
INTELLIGENCE
Octopuses are considered to be one of the most intelligent marine species. Their brain is the largest and most advanced of any invertebrate.
It is believed that an octopus's memory and learning capability can be compared in complexity to that of advanced vertebrates - Octopuses have been known to undo child proof tops on medicine bottles to get at food.
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| An octopus opening a container with a screw cap. By User:MatthiasKabel - Wikipedia |
Octopuses are good mimics. Some imitate other dangerous animals like sea snakes and lionfish.
BEHAVIOR
Octopuses have been seen eating their arms as a result of a neurplogical disease.
When an octopus' arm is severed, the arm will continue to search for food – Then it will try to feed the mouth it doesn't have.
They eat mostly crabs and some fish. Some species of octopuses eat other octopuses.
In his History Of Animals, Aristotle remarked that when the octopus comes into proximity with small fish, it might change its color to resemble surrounding stones and that it reacts in a similar way when alarmed.
The southern sand octopus shoot jets of water into the sand below it, creating a pit of quicksand to escape from predators.
 |
| Amphioctopus marginatus travels with shells it has collected for protection. By Nick Hobgood |
All octopuses are venomous. To kill their prey they drill through the prey's shell and inject their venom into their body using their beak.
Although all octopuses are venomous, only the blue-ringed octopus is harmful to humans.
A female octopus can lay clutches of about 100,000 eggs, however, only a handful will survive to adulthood.
A female Giant Pacific Octopus quits eating and spends six months slowly dying as she tends to and protects her eggs.
The longest known brooding period for any species on the planet goes to the Graneledone boreopacifica, an octopus that guards its eggs for an astounding 4.5 years.
Octopuses have been observed acquiring shiny objects and stones and planting them around the sea bed like a garden. The song "Octopus’s Garden" by the Beatles was inspired by the captain of a boat informing Ringo Starr of this fact while on vacation in Sardinia.
ANATOMY
A baby octopus is about the size of a flea when it is born.
An Octopus consists of just a head and tentacles. Therefore his stomach, testicles etc are in his head.
The neurons in an octopus are not concentrated in the brain - two thirds of them are located in the tentacles meaning that each individual tentacle acts autonomously and independently of the brain. However, an octopus can exert precise control over a tentacle when need be through eyesight alone.
An octopus actually has six arms and two legs, not eight legs. They use their rearmost tentacles to push off from the surface of the sea bed before propelling themselves through the water with the other limbs.
 |
| Octopuses swim with their arms trailing behind. By albert kok - Wikipedia |
Octopuses are the only animal that walk without any rhythm or pattern at all, just random movements that propel it forward.
An octopus is able to squeeze through a hole the size of a dime.
An octopus has three hearts. Two hearts are used to pump blood to each of the octopus' lungs and the third pumps blood throughout the body.
Octopus skin can change color 177 times an hour.
SPORT
Heavyweight boxer Tony 'Two Ton' Galento was a colorful and controversial figure in boxing, and he was always up for a publicity stunt. In 1946, he accepted a bet to fight an octopus with boxing gloves on its tentacles. The fight took place at the Steel Pier in Atlantic City, New Jersey on August 5, 1946.
The octopus was a large, eight-armed creature that weighed over 100 pounds. It was placed in a tank of water, and Galento climbed in to fight it. The octopus fought back with its tentacles, but Galento was able to land some punches. In the end, neither fighter was able to knock the other out, and the fight was declared a draw.
Octopus wrestling, a sport which involved diving into shallow water and fighting an octopus back to the surface, was most popular on the West Coast of the United States during the 1960s. The 1963 record was a 57-pounder.
The annual World Octopus Wrestling Championships was held in Puget Sound, Washington. The event was televised and attracted up to 5,000 spectators in the 1960s.
FUN FACTS
According to Hawaiian mythology, the octopus is the only surviving member of a previous version of Earth.
In Japan you can get octopus flavored ice cream.
Source The Independent
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