They catch octopuses throwing shells at each other

cUnderwater video cameras have recorded more than 100 cases of octopuses squirting slime and shells each other in Jervis Bay, Australia.

Videoswith screenshots Almost 24 hours, captured In 2014 and 2015, but only now analyzed to me complete. The team of researchers who studied the behavior published Today his findings are in Plus One.

dark octopus or octopus Sydney joint (Velvet octopus) Originally from coasts of Australia and New Zealand. They are rusty brown in color and have white eyes. The octopus feeds mainly on mollusks, but it has also been documented that it eats members of its own kind. According to the Australian Museum.

In the videos, the eight-armed cephalopods pick up seafloor material such as silt and shells, then push it through the water with a siphon and arms. Previously they had I noticed octopuses throwing sand Who will siphon it, but more important things such as seashells are not thrown.

Researchers discovered that the octopuses had to move their blades to an unusual position, below a grid The arms of the octopus, to expel the substance, indicating that they were deliberately throwing it.

I saw the difference Both sexes release substances; About half of the releases were made while interacting with other octopuses. only the 17% of shots hit the target, so if you’re a sports agent reading this, think carefully before hiring Dark Octopus The eight arms are clearly not as useful as they seem.

The Octopuses don’t throw things at their enemies Sae Young’s style. The thruster is fully driven by its straws; Weapons are simply guiding articles.

Since some versions were male octopuses and others were female octopuses, and occurred in the presence and absence of other octopuses, researchers aren’t quite sure why.. In at least some cases, the team believes the releases serve a social purpose. Considering that in some videos octopuses were literally covered in slime thrown at them by a nearby octopus, this seems to be true.

Researchers in the study note that octopuses are generally antisocial, but sometimes show tolerance towards other individuals. but meaning Covering another member of its kind with mud, algae, and shells may require further examination.

The release behavior puts the sooty octopus on a short list of species that exhibited some kind of release behavior, along with chimpanzees, capuchins, elephants, polar bears, Egyptian vultures, and a few other species.

Octopuses are very bright creatures. Maybe they have good reason to throw things away. We just need to be smart enough to know what they’re up to.