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Perhaps we should nickname it the Coconut Octopus. Okay, so it is not actually called that. It is the Indonesian Veined Octopus. And just this week scientists in Australia noticed a very exceptional behavior demonstrated by this particular member of the Cephalopod class. It has long been known that octopuses are the smartest of the invertebrates. Hiding in shells is not new for these creatures. Such This conduct has been seen many times. But that scenario takes place when the octopus is immediately in danger and there is a shell handy. Taking an item to use later is what makes this coconut gathering conduct unusual. The odd stepping inevitably employed to transport the awkward object would seem to put the invertebrate in greater danger. Of course, octopuses are extremely nimble. If threatened while carrying this half of a coconut shell, it could perhaps defend itself by fitting underneath and pulling the hard surface up for cover. It might require an equally clever or stronger predator to get to the hidden octopus. Researchers had no notion that such planned actions were adopted by invertebrates. And the sight of an octopus scampering as far as 65 feet (or 20 meters) with the object in tow is impressive, judging from eyewitness accounts. Having this idea to cart off half a coconut to a specified location and then bring another half to the same place to use as shelter is known as “tool use.” This creature of the ocean has learned how to use these discarded coconut halves as a hide-out. Thus, the garbage on the ocean floor is converted into a tool for survival. Who knew? So, with the recent flutter about these invertebrates, let’s check out our understanding of them. The octopus a part of the cephalopod class, comprising nearly one-third of the members of this group. It is loosely related to clams and snails. The octopus is hunted by sperm whales, seals, fish, such as eels, and sea birds. They are by far the most intelligent in their biological family, the brain being composed of nearly 500 million large neurons. For comparison, the human brain contains 100 billion smaller neurons. Octopuses are solitary. The life expectancy for a quick and healthy male octopus is just 3-5 years. The female does not live as long, since she goes into a period of fasting after she lays her eggs. She does not eat so that she can stay to protect the 2,000-3,000 eggs she has just deposited. When they hatch, the life-giving mother has just died of starvation. And do you know how many hearts an octopus has? If you said three, you are exactly right. A lost arm will regenerate. And those suction cup-like parts of their tentacles contain something to help the octopus smell. Picture sniffing something with your arm. Octopuses are quite amazing, really. But the coconut gatherer is sure to make you grin as you watch it toe-step with its prize while it scuttles across to its sandy home.
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