FLAQ Sea Hunt Exhibit

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Octopus Exhibit - Sea Hunt Gallery

Octopus

•	Located: on the 1st floor in Sea Hunt
•	Access: From Lobby Sea Hunt Entrance, From Main Sea Hunt & Coral Reef Areas
•	Near: Shark Bay
•	Animals: Giant Pacific Octopus
•	Tanks: 1

A Close-Up Of Albert - The New Male

© Photo By: Tim McGuinness

Octopus Are Very Smart

The New Pacific Red Octopus Added In June 2006

© Photo By: Tim McGuinness

Close Up Of Suction Cups

© Photo By: Tim McGuinness

A Staff Member Interacts With The Octopus - They Are Intelligent & Touchy Feely Creatures!

© Photo By: Tim McGuinness

She's Watching You!

© Photo By: Tim McGuinness

The Giant Pacific (Red) Octopus
A close relative of Squids

Octopus are mollusks like squid (and clams, and oysters!). There are about 200 species of octopus (Cephalopods). There are two large groups of octopus. The cirrata or finned octopuses live in the deep sea at depths of between 1000 and 24,000 feet. About 85% of octopus are in the incirrata group. They have no fins and live in shallow water in caves or crevices. Octopus have no shell at all, not even an inner one. They have eight tentacles. The tentacles have suction cups on them and are used to hold onto prey. The tentacles also have taste sensors that let the octopus know if what it grabbed is worth eating.

The octopus' mouth is in the center of its tentacles. It has a sharp beak on its mouth that it uses to crack shells. Some species may also inject prey with a toxic substance. Because it has no shell, an octopus can squeeze into very small spaces. Octopus live alone and, like the squid, some species can shoot ink and change colors.

Cephalopods are dioecious, and have a single gonad that is located at the rear of the body. The female oviduct is a clear egg mass and the male spermatophore a milky substance. Large, yolky eggs are deposited by octopuses in clusters, the size of small grapes. These clusters are most often found on rocks, seagrass or other objects. Squid have free floating eggs that develop as plankton (organisms drifting in the ocean current). Both octopuses and squid can lay thousands of eggs. The young are born as miniature adults swimming, hunting and squirting ink. Squid and octopuses mature quickly, reproduce and then usually die within one to three years.