Octopus Escapes

Some people keep octopuses in tanks as pets. Apparently this can be problematic. Many people report octopus escapes!
I found an article from ABC news about an octopus who escaped from New Zealand aquarium. The report says it survived for five days on the run before the aquarium staff found it dashing for the door!
The good news is they decided to release it into the wild!
Here is a link to the *article* please ask a parent or teacher to view it first as the site has links to the latest news.
Photo credit and special thanks to Marah McAleer for this great shot of an octopus in an aquarium tank.... this is not the one that got away.

Octopus Facts

  • Octopus have keen eyesight, three hearts, a beak and a doughnut shaped brain! 
  • When under attack some octopuses can throw an arm, kind of like a lizard can throw a tail. The arm can crawl along to distract the predator! 
  • Besides throwing an arm an octopus can eject a cloud of thick black ink to help it escape
  • The Mimic octopus can impersonate other sea creatures! 
  • The word octopus has more than one plural term – octopuses is only one of the plural terms I am not going to tell you the others.

Blue ringed octopus

There are more than one species that are known as "Blue-ringed octopuses". They are small but they can release deadly poison. They only display their beautiful iridescent blue markings when they are about release their poison! You can learn more about them *here* and *here*

Octopuses in ACTION!

Would you like to watch some octopuses in action? Here is a collection of some clips you might like.

Mini Articles

Find more mini articles on the home page