Octopuses keep surprising us - here are eight examples how
Octopuses have blue blood, three hearts, and a brain that is shaped like a doughnut. But that’s not even the most unique aspect of them! Octopuses are known for their alien appearance and exceptional intelligence, and they continue to exhibit amazing features, talents, and behaviour.
1. More than one brain
The fact that octopuses have eight limbs is well-known. Did you realize, though, that each arm has its own’mini brain’? More information is available from Jon Ablett, curator of the Museum’s cephalopod collection (which includes octopuses). Octopuses can ■■■■■■■ activities with their arms more swiftly and effectively because of this configuration. Furthermore, while each limb can function independently - tasting, touching, and moving without being directed - the centralized brain can also exercise top-down control. In 2011, researchers conducted an experiment to see if an octopus could learn to manoeuvre one of its arms through a maze to get food. The maze was created to force the arm to leave the water, preventing it from using its chemical sensors to locate the food. The octopus was able to see the food because of the transparent walls. The majority of the octopuses eventually succeeded in directing their arm to the food .
2. Seriously clever
Scientists use the size of an animal’s brain in comparison to its body to estimate its intelligence since it indicates how much the animal is ‘spending’ in its brain. It’s not a perfect metric because other factors such as brain folding also play a role, but smarter animals have a greater brain-to-body ratio. The brain-to-body ratio of an octopus is the highest of any creature. It’s also bigger than a lot of vertebrates, though not as big as mammals. Octopuses have around the same number of neurons as dogs, with around 500 million in the common octopus (Octopus vulgaris). It has two-thirds of its body in its arms. The remainder is stored in the doughnut-shaped brain. On the seafloor, this octopus wedged itself into a broken bottle.
There are also fascinating anecdotes about the powers and mischief of octopuses. ‘I recall reading about a lab where all of the fish went missing from their aquarium,’ Jon recalls. ‘The crew set up a little video camera and discovered that one of the octopuses was getting out of its tank, going to the other tank, opening it, eating the fish, closing the lid, returning to its own tank, and concealing the evidence.’ Similar cunning behaviour and inventive problem-solving have been observed in the wild. Meanwhile, when seeking for supper, the larger Pacific striped octopus employs fright tactics. It approaches its victim, such as a shrimp, quietly and taps it on the shoulder. The startled shrimp usually rushes away from the arm that touched it and dashes into the grasp of the waiting octopus. Having seven extra arms comes in useful. In this video from the University of California, Berkeley, you can see this unique hunting approach in action.
3. They can use tools
Tool use is uncommon in the animal kingdom, and we usually link it with apes, monkeys, dolphins, and some birds (particularly crows and parrots). It is a good indicator of learning ability. Only octopuses and a few insects are known to utilize tools among invertebrates.
‘In the wild, octopuses have been shown to build little dens and to use stones to create sort of shields to protect the entrance,’ Jon explains. ‘As well as solving tasks using tools to get food rewards in the lab, octopuses have been shown to build little dens and to use stones to create sort of shields to protect the entrance.’ They stack whatever they can find, including rocks, broken shells, and even shattered glass and bottle caps. Tentacles are carried by little individuals of the common blanket octopus (Tremoctopus violaceus). The veined octopus (Amphioctopus marginatus) has devised a novel method of collecting coconut and sea shells from the seafloor. After digging up the shells, the octopuses washed them down with water jets. They then transported them to a different place where they were erected into a shelter. Traveling on the sea floor with the shells underneath their bodies resulted in a sluggish and ungainly’stilt walk.’ The octopuses are more vulnerable to predators as a result of this, but it appears that they are ready to take the short-term danger in exchange for future safety. The scientists that found the behaviour claim that this, along with the fact that the shells are moved around, is what causes the behaviour.
4. Ability to recognize people (and pick on them!)
Octopuses have big optic lobes, which are brain areas dedicated to vision, indicating that it is crucial to their way of life. ‘Octopuses appear to be able to recognize individuals from other species, including human faces,’ Jon says. It’s not a one-of-a-kind behaviour; other mammals and birds do it as well, but it is unusual.’ A captive octopus at the University of Otago in New Zealand apparently took a disliking to one of the workers, according to Scientific American. The octopus squirted a stream of water at her every time she passed by the tank. If an octopus catches your attention, you’d best hope it likes you. Damsea/Shutterstock.com
The Seattle Aquarium’s biologists devised an experiment to test the huge Pacific octopus’ recognizing ability. One individual fed a group of octopuses on a regular basis for two weeks, while another caressed them with a bristly stick. The octopuses responded differently toward the ‘good’ and’mean’ keepers at the end of the experiment, indicating that the octopuses could distinguish between them while wearing identical uniforms.
5. Unusual sexy time
Many male octopuses lack external genitalia and instead deliver their sperm to the female using a modified arm termed a hectocotylus. ‘The appearance of the hectocotylus varies between species,’ Jon explains. Some resemble a syringe, while others resemble a spoon, and one resembles a small toast rack, according to the North Atlantic octopus (Bathypolypus arcticus). According to Jon, each species has a somewhat distinct technique. ‘The male octopus in argonauts, sometimes known as paper nautiluses, goes one step further in his attempts to breed, leaving his sexual appendage in the lady octopus when he jets away.’ It’s game over after a male has handed over his sperm.
6. Self-sacrificing mums
Even for octopus mothers, life isn’t easy. They literally lay down their life for their children.
‘The females of some octopus species demonstrate parental care,’ Jon says. ‘They safeguard their eggs from predators by wafting water over them to oxygenate them.’ They continue to act in this manner until the eggs hatch. It can last up to three months in shallow-water species, but certain octopuses take their care to the extreme. Graneledone boreopacifica has been named “mother of the year.” This deep-sea octopus was spotted brooding her clutch of eggs for 53 months, or nearly four years. It’s the world’s longest known brooding period for any animal. The researchers never observed the female leave her eggs or consume anything, not even crabs or shrimp that ventured close by, during their 18 dives to the depths of Monterey Canyon, California. Instead, the researchers noticed the woman losing weight, her skin becoming loose and pale, and her eyes becoming hazy. Her incredible self-sacrifice allowed her children to reach a more advanced stage of development. Hatchlings of G. boreopacifica are similar to it.
7. Cunning disguises and escape techniques
Octopuses are probably the best camouflage artists on the planet. ‘Thousands of specialized cells under their skin called chromatophores assist them in changing colour in a moment,’ Jon adds. They also have papilli, which are little sections of skin that they may extend or retract to change the texture of their skin to match the environment.’ Octopuses may change their colour as well as their skin texture. Researchers have recently built a synthetic skin that replicates the function and design of the papillae, generating a stretchy material that can be programmed to shift into 3D patterns, inspired by the incredible camouflage ability of octopuses (and cuttlefish). The mimic octopus is perhaps the most amazing of all self-concealers (Thaumoctopus mimicus). This octopus, discovered in 1998 in Indonesia, doesn’t imitate the surrounding rocks, reefs, or seaweed like other octopuses, but instead imitates other species that predators avoid. It arranges itself by contorting its body.
8. Builder of cities
Octopuses are usually antisocial creatures, with only a few known exceptions. In Jervis Bay, Australia, scientists discovered an unexpected finding in 2012: the purportedly lonely gloomy octopus (Octopus tetricus) actually builds underwater towns. Rock outcrops and leftover piles of shells from the clams and scallops the octopuses have devoured are used to create dens. Octopolis, as it was dubbed, and Octlantis, a second, adjacent octopus commune explored in 2017, had population sizes that aren’t quite up to London standards, with only around 15 residents. They are, however, significantly higher than scientists expected based on O. tetricus’s solitary reputation.
why do octopuses have blue blood?
Are you still perplexed as to why octopus blood is blue and the function of the three hearts?
The octopus’s blood is blue because the protein haemocyanin, which transports oxygen around the body, contains copper rather than iron, as our own haemoglobin does. In cold and low-oxygen environments, the copper-based protein is more efficient at transferring oxygen molecules, making it perfect for life in the ocean. When an animal’s blood (called haemolymph in invertebrates) is deoxygenated - for example, when it dies - it loses its blue colour and becomes transparent instead. The three hearts of an octopus play slightly distinct roles. One heart pumps blood throughout the body, while the other two pump oxygen.
FAQ’S
What animal has 8 hearts?
Explanation: There is currently no animal with so many hearts. However, Barosaurus was a massive dinosaur with eight hearts to keep blood flowing up to its head. The Octopus now has the maximum number of hearts, which is three.
Why does an octopus have 9 brains?
Octopuses have nine brains because, in addition to the primary brain, each of their eight arms has its own mini-brain that allows it to function independently. Octopuses have blue blood because they use hemocyanin, a copper-rich protein, to adapt to cold, low-oxygen water.
Does an octopus have 8 hearts?
The three hearts, nine brains, and blue blood of the huge Pacific octopus make reality weirder than fiction. The nerve system is controlled by the central brain. In addition, each of its eight arms has a miniature brain – a collection of nerve cells that researchers believe governs movement. Blood is pumped to the gills by two hearts.
Do all octopus have three hearts?
The fact that octopuses have three hearts is due in part to their blue blood. Blood is pumped into the gills, where it gathers up oxygen, by their two peripheral hearts. The oxygenated blood is subsequently circulated to the remainder of the body, providing energy to organs and muscles.
Conclusion
A gloomy octopus (Octopus tetricus) lurking in a den. As we all know, city living has its benefits and downsides. Aggression, chases, and even den evictions have been seen among the Octlantis octopuses. The researchers say they’re not sure what the advantages of living in a densely populated community are for these octopuses, but it could simply be a question of necessity, given the scarcity of den locations in the otherwise flat and featureless environment.