Skip to main content

Common Octopus

Image from New York Daily News
The 2010 World Cup ended yesterday, and while the world is abuzz with Spain's first win, there has also been a great deal of talk about Paul. Who is Paul? Paul is the Common Octopus "Oracle" who correctly picked the outcomes of all 7 of Germany's games, plus the World Cup Final. Treats were placed in boxes adorned with national flags. The treat eaten first was the winning team. Paul went 8 for 8. (Though he did make some blunders during the 2008 Euro) Anyway, Paul is retiring now, but in celebration of his strange cephalopod superpowers, enjoy some facts on the Common Octopus (Octopus vulgaris)!

Common Octopuses (Octopi is actually an incorrect plural term) are found in temperate and tropical coastal waters across a great deal of the planet. They live at depths shallower than 500 feet. Octopuses are carnivorous, and are active predators during the daytime. They feed primarily on crustaceans and mollusks, and they will actually stockpile their food to eat at a later time. They hunt by a variety of methods, including stalking, luring, and simply groping around for their prey. After consuming a meal, they will leave the shell in a heap known as a midden pile. These piles help scientists to study not only what Octopuses eat, but also what kinda of organisms live in the area.

Image from Animal Picture Archive
Octopuses have some pretty amazing senses. They have the largest brains of any invertebrate and have both long and short term memories. They are also capable of some pretty advanced problem solving. The Common Octopus has wonderful eyesight, and they are able to distinguish between other creatures and objects, both by sight and by touch.they also have extremely flexible bodies, and can squeeze through spaces that are only a fraction of their overall body size.

Common Octopuses also have an amazing array of defense mechanisms. They are able to change both the color, and the texture of their skin. This allows them to hide virtually in plain sight. Skin color is also able to reflect the mood of the Octopus. Another defense they have is their ink. If the camouflage fails, the Octopus will shoot a jet of ink at its attacker, which disorients them and gives the Octopus time to escape. This ink also contains a substance that affects the attackers' sense of smell, further allowing the Octopus to flee in safety.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Bornean Orangutan

The Bornean Orangutan is one of two extant Orangutan species in the world. It is the third largest primate (after Gorillas) and is the largest primarily tree-dwelling animal in the world. Males are substantially larger than females, and average at around 165lbs. Bornean Orangutans are largely solitary. A handful might live within a small range but they will seldom interact with one another. Males and females only meet up to breed, which happens only once every several years. A young Orangutan will stay with it's mother for about five years, and the females tend to go about eight years between births. That is the longest interim period of any animal! Sadly, the Bornean Orangutans are in a lot of trouble. They need large forests in order to thrive, and deforestation and habitat degradation has left many homeless. They are also hunted for meat and for traditional medicines. Conservation areas are being established to help these guys in the wild, and it is believed that there are a

Four!

For anyone who was counting, yesterday was our birthday-- four years! Four years filled with animals from A to Z, more than 1,100 of them! I can't thank my readers enough, it's been wonderful! And in celebration of that milestone... I'm taking a break. Hopefully not forever, but for a little bit at least. In the mean time I plan on getting a new layout out, along with some updates to some of the older articles. I'll post updates here and on the Facebook page, I'm also brainstorming some new animal-related projects, so keep an eye out! Thanks again for four awesome years!

Binturong

The Binturong ( Arctictis binturong ) also has an equally awesome alternate common name, the Bearcat! However, it really isn't much of a bear OR a cat. While it is true that it is part of the Feliforma suborder, it is not a member of family Felidae. Binturongs are a part of their own family, Viverridae, which is shared with Civets, Linsangs, and Genets. There are six subspecies of Binturong, all of which have slight differences based upon location and habitat. Binturongs range in body size from 60-100cm in length, (not including their tail which has roughly the same length) and weigh between 20 and 30lbs. Binturongs are nocturnal animals native to the rain forests of South East Asia. The species range spans through several countries including China, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines. They are tree dwelling mammals, and have fully prehensile tails that basically double their body length and can be used to cling to the trees or to grasp food. Binturongs are phe