Its Cephalopod week, honoring that amazing class of Mollusks. Cephalopods include the octopus, squid and cuttlefish, though not a fish at all! They are soft bodied marine invertebrates with extraordinary sensory capabilities, masters of camouflage and great intelligence. A few years ago while leading an expedition to Belize for Women, we had a most incredible encounter.
Here’s a recap of the story, Enjoy!
While traveling through Belize, we were able to observe Caribbean Reef Octopus nightly as we explored the intertidal near our water huts on the edge of Glover’s Atoll.
We watched in fascination as the octopus fished under coral rubble by elongating their arms ladened with sensory suckers which can taste their food once captured. Their beak/mouth is positioned at the base of their 8 arms and as Erica Berg keenly observed, their mouth is in their armpits!
We noticed a small sharpnose pufferfish become momentarily trapped by a sucker then quickly released as the octopus likely detected the unfavorable catch. Puffers contain tetrodotoxin, a powerful neurotoxin which protects the puffer from predation. Bobbing to the surface, the tiny puffer inflated it’s body and wobbled away.
Our group of women were such keen observers! We learned from each other sharing our daily observations during our 12 day blue water adventure! Join a naturalist-led adventure at https://www.bluewaterventures.org!
