Mimic octopus

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Mimic octopus
Mimic Octopus 2.jpg

Mimic octopus ( Thaumoctopus mimicus )

Systematics
Trunk : Molluscs (mollusca)
Class : Cephalopods (cephalopoda)
Order : Octopus (octopoda)
Family : Real octopus (Octopodidae)
Genre : Thaumoctopus
Type : Mimic octopus
Scientific name of the  genus
Thaumoctopus
Norman & Hochberg , 2005
Scientific name of the  species
Thaumoctopus mimicus
Norman & Hochberg , 2005

The mimic octopus ( Thaumoctopus mimicus ), also known as the carnival squid, is a large cephalopod from the genus Thaumoctopus. It is the only species in the genus that is monotypical . He lives in the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean .

Habitat and way of life

The mimic octopus occurs in shallow water at depths of 0.5 to 7 meters on soft substrate. The species is diurnal and feeds on small fish and crustaceans .

mimicry

The mimic octopus was not documented for the first time until 2001 . Science first became aware of the rare and long-armed cephalopod through a contribution by Mark D. Norman, Julian Finn and Tom Tregenza. In this article, the researchers report on an octopus off the coast of Malaysia , presumably previously unknown to science , which was able to perfectly imitate various marine creatures by changing shape and color. They documented the contribution through several film recordings that show the animal transforming into a sea ​​snake , a flounder , an octopus , a stingray , a snail and a lionfish . In their opinion, these changes represented a variable form of mimicry , which would be unique in the animal kingdom. So far, the use of the above-mentioned mimicry has only been observed to escape or to deter potential opponents. This form of camouflage was observed for the first time in octopuses , which adapted to a coconut by changing the color and shape of the skin in order to float unhindered through the water. They used minimal parts of their tentacles to navigate during this process. Since this discovery, the rare animals have been observed more frequently. A second species, very similar to the mimic octopus, is now known and is known as the Wunderpus .

Keeping in captivity

Attempts have been made several times to keep the animals in aquariums . Most of the attempts were unsuccessful, however, as the animal mostly does not eat any food in captivity and accordingly dies quickly. One specimen has been living in the Haus des Meeres in Vienna since June 2017 .

The Wunderpus was apparently regularly disguised as a "zebra octopus" on the market. Experts therefore warn against buying the animals.

literature

  • Mark D. Norman, Julian Finn, Tom Tregenza (2001): Dynamic mimicry in an Indo-Malayan octopus. In: Proceedings of the Royal Society . 268, pp. 1755-1758.
  • Mark D. Norman & FG Hochberg (2005): The "Mimic Octopus" ( Thaumoctopus mimicus n. Gen. Et sp.), A new octopus from the tropical Indo-West Pacific (Cephalopoda: Octopodidae). In: Molluscan Research 25 (2), pp. 57-70. ( Abstract )

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Mark D. Norman & FG Hochberg (2005): The "Mimic Octopus" ( Thaumoctopus mimicus n. Gen. Et sp.), A new octopus from the tropical Indo-West Pacific (Cephalopoda: Octopodidae). In: Molluscan Research 25 (2), pp. 57-70. ( Abstract )
  2. ^ House of the Sea: Acting octopus in the HdM. Retrieved January 25, 2018 .

Web links

Commons : Mimic Octopus ( Thaumoctopus mimicus )  - Collection of images, videos and audio files