If you are used to diving, you probably find the several types of octopus all out the sea. About 300 species of octopuses have been identified. They look unique and cute with a soft sac body that lacks a shell, about 90% muscles on their body and several suckers bearing-arm.
The mature female generally has over 280 suckers on the arm, a sucker has thousand of the chemical receptors which are sensitive of touched and tasted.
The octopuses come in varying shapes, sizes, patterns, and colors. They are able to change the color rapidly and blending with their surroundings to camouflage their prey or enemy. Most species are venomous that known as octopus ink, however, the only one species is deadly.
Octopuses are known as among the most intelligent animal ocean due to the numbers of their neuron. Each octopus considered has 500 million neurons on the brain. Each female octopus lays eggs over eighty to one hundred thousand eggs that supported by three hearts.
The standard plural in English of octopus is octopuses, according to the Oxford English Dictionary. As a word that comes from Greek, it follows Greek rules for plurals. The word “octopi,” which follows Latin rules for plurals, is incorrect.
Not all octopuses have long arms. The Opisthoteuthis adorabilis’ arms are very short and have webbing in between each one. This gives the tiny octopus the look of an orange ghost.
Octopuses are about as smart as house cats.
The oldest octopus fossil is from an animal that lived 296 million years ago — millions of years before the dinosaurs lived.
The large size of this octopus takes the reason for its name, the giant octopus. It grows over 16 feet in length and in weighs about 110 lbs. The giant octopus is able to change the color. It commonly feeds lobsters, fish, and shellfish.
The giant octopus is a shallow coastal of the oceans that it naturally lives in the depth about 1650 feet. The life span of this animal is the longest among all the types of octopus, the males are four years, while females are five years.
As the name suggests, blue-ringed octopus is covered blue circular bands on its body. This type of octopus is known as deadly of all the octopuses.
It secretes strong poisonous fluids that 1000 stronger than cyanide and effectively kills about 26 humans in minutes.
The usages of its poisonous fluid are to self-defense and to hunt their prey such as hermit crabs, small fish, and small shellfish.
The blue-ringed octopus is small which commonly grows 2 inches. This octopus can be found on the coast of Indonesia and Australia that about 165 feet in depth.
The blue-ringed octopus is not an aggressive animal, however, it will hit when handled. You have to aware when finding it close to you, make sure that you take distance from it.
The common octopus has a large head, eyes, and long tentacles. It lives in the shallow of the temperate water through the Atlantic ocean. This octopus naturally feeds mollusks, shellfish, and crabs.
The common octopus is able to change its skin color that closes to the surroundings by the pigment cells on its tentacles. The ability to altering color is to self-defense from predators.
Caribbean reef octopus
Sometimes people are mistaken about Caribbean reef octopus and common octopus. The way to differ both of them is by their eyes. The Caribbean reef octopus has a dark circle of the edge eyes. This type of octopus is a medium size, reaching 5 inches in length and in the weight up to three pounds.
Despite changing the color quickly to camouflage the predator and prey. Caribbean reef octopus is also able to lay flat the body on the ground that like a reef, this might be the reason for name comes from.
This octopus is found in the Atlantic ocean throughout western regions, where lives in warm water.
Mimic octopus frequently imitates the act of other water animals to self-defense from predators. The behavior is surely a reason that the name “mimic” comes from.
There are 15 different animals that have been imitated, included sea snake, stingray, lionfish, jellyfish, rock/ coral, starfish, eels, sole fish, furry turkey, And others fish.
The body is two feet in length which stripes of both dark brown and white. This type of octopus is commonly found throughout the coast of Sulawesi, Indonesia, and southeast Asia where is warm. The diets are worms, crabs, and other small fishes.
As the name implies, blanket octopus appears like a floating wet blanket. The females are recognized ten thousand times bigger than males. Blanket octopus commonly spends its life living in the open oceans.
Coconut octopus has a unique habit that looking for shells and carrying them anywhere it goes. This octopus uses the shells for hidden its self in order to protect from the predators. This habit might be the reason for the name comes from.
California two-spot octopus
California’s two-spot octopus can be found in the warm water of Mexico, Japan, and Afrika. it lives in the shallow that only in the depth 65 feet so that people frequently find it easily. this type of octopus is friendly that does not mind when other creatures come approach.
California two-spot octopus is also known as bimac octopus that has two blue spots around its eyes in various shapes, and the color is grey with small yellow spots.
Seven arm octopus
The name of seven arm octopus comes from the numbers of its arm. Actually, there are eight arms, however, the one is sited underneath of eyes which similar to the small sac. The length of its seven arms is about 13 feet and 150-pound weight, that’s why it is recognized as among large octopus.
Seven arm octopus has less of tentacles than other types and covered white color. It is adaptable that survives at the vary condition of the environment.
East pacific red octopus
As the name implies, the main color of the east pacific red octopus has many colors, including red, brown, white, and yellow.
However, it can change the color into several colors, included brownish red, yellow, white, and brown. This type is generally found throughout the west coast to Alaska and lives in the depth up to 300 feet.
This octopus is a small, reaching in the length 20 inches and 5 ounces in weight. The arm is three times longer than the main body. It frequently feeds crabs, clams, fish, scallops, and others.
Atlantic pygmy octopus
Atlantic pygmy octopus is among the smallest types of octopus that grows up to 5.5 inches length and in weight only one ounce. Like most species of octopus, it is able to change the color as the surroundings to camouflage the predator and its prey.
It hunts the prey by secreting toxic fluid called ink. Atlantic pygmy octopus commonly can be found in the Cayman Island.
The dumbo is not like other types of octopus, it is less of ink to self-defense from the predators. People might figure out the unique appearance of dumbo is similar to the elephant.
There is more different characteristic of dumbo than just its funny figure with its two fins located on the top of eyes.
This octopus is a yellow bright color which mostly found at the depth of over 13.100 feet, therefore it is classified as one of the deepest dwelling octopus.