Allen's Blog

He who cannot be seen: Octopi can fit through anywhere, as long as the opening is larger than their beak

          It is often said that food is the essence of life, and in the short, nonfiction picture book The Octopus Scientists, it could not be more true. A group of scientists ventures to the research foundation, CRIOBE, on the island of Moorea to study the octopi around the Moorean reefs. Their trip is documented by Sy Montgomery and compiled into a book, The Octopus Scientists. The book explains everything about the scientist’s journey from their research to their lifestyle. The text revolves around the central idea that the food an octopus eats and the meal remains of its food are vital to octopus research for the scientists, as they help determine the best time and place to study octopi, how to locate octopi for hands-on research, and how to differentiate octopus species, all crucial aspects for octopus research.

          For starters, the food an octopus eats is indispensable to the species and – indirectly – the location of the particular species. As mission reporter Sy Montgomery summarized on page 66, “…in Moorea, the same species of octopus acted differently than the octopuses previously studied in Hawaii…those in Moorea didn’t stay long in their dens and didn’t bring lots of prey home”.  According to Montgomery, although by definition the same species in both Hawaii and Moorea, the octopi in Moorea acted significantly different than the ones in Hawaii. Montgomery further stated that the difference could be “… because Moorea has different octopus food than Hawaii…[Hawaii has more crabs in terms of prey]” (Montgomery 66). These conclusive pieces of research at CRIOBE continue supporting the central idea of the text that the meal remains of an octopus are extremely important to octopi research, as the difference in octopus diets make a substantial difference in the behaviour and can be what differentiates separate octopus species. As shown above, the prey selection in the area and, invariably, the general practice of Moorea octopi differ from the actions and preferences of Hawaii octopi, because of differences in available prey, forcing octopuses to adapt in order to catch food and consume it. Octopus hunting and eating habits change to fit particular foods, and general activity will change as well to adapt to the different diet style as well, thus creating new and unique octopus varieties and possibly species over time.

          Furthermore, octopi, in order to reduce hunting time and energy, will live near plentiful food sources that they eat. During a search in an area laden with sea cucumbers, one of the team members mentions that “…if octopuses don’t eat sea cucumbers [and they don’t] then this is not the place for our study” (Montgomery 14). This quote shows that an octopus’s food is what governs where it lives because an octopus would not live in an area without prey available to it. If an octopus ate sea cucumbers, then the team would have arrived at a research gold mine, their location being so laden with sea cucumbers. But since octopi don’t eat sea cucumbers, the group now gathers valuable information from the food selection on where not to study octopi. Alongside this, data derived from octopus meal remains can also point as to when to better analyze them. Octopus prey are also subject to breeding periods, migration patterns, and population fluctuation. Significantly different octopus meal remains could point to a shift in prey selection, and recurring elements in this data further help scientists determine when octopi will be most active and when they will be most dormant, narrowing down a specific timeframe to fully utilize their resources to study octopi.

              Finally, the remains of an octopus meal can help find its location simply because an octopus is likely to deposit food remains near their den(s) to save time, energy, and mark territory. As team members Montgomery and Jennifer explain, “Jennifer…looks for piles of intact shells. Such ‘garbage heaps’ are known as middens, [A collection of shell and meal remains an octopus makes] she explains, and she considers these the best giveaway that an octopus is occupying a home nearby” (Montgomery 17).

Octopus midden from Flickr user Steven Severinghaus – Creative Commons 2.0

An octopus lurks in its den, behind a pile of shells left over from its meals. (Juneau Empire)

This statement shows that octopus dens and octopi locations are best found using the help, and extra information that middens give, thus further supporting a central idea in the text that the meal remains of an octopus are essential to octopus research. Since octopi are likely to deposit food remains nearby their home to save travel time and energy, finding and examining their middens not only help locate octopi for hands-on study and analysis, but also narrow down the types of food the octopus in question eats, providing invaluable statistics that other forms of octopus research cannot.

        But how can this be relatable? What is the point of such tedious work to study simple invertebrates? Well, aside from reproduction, food has always been the primary focus for organisms, and for humans, it is still a large part of our lives. We share common traits with millions of species of animals, and octopi are no exception. Octopi, like many other wild animals, spend a significant portion of their time alive hunting for sustenance.

The rest is devoted to building a den, moving, and mating. Similarly, before the arrival of crops and domestication, humans struggled on a day-to-day basis of procuring food to feed oneself and the family. Bands of hunters would hunt and live nomadic lives, scouring the landscape in search of edibles. Just like the modern day octopus, primitive humans spent virtually all their time on food. Unlike octopi, however, humans eventually grew into a more sedentary lifestyle, generating food through the means of crops, livestock, and trade.

Although today our views on what is the most important in our lives have changed drastically from earlier times, it is a surprising amount of primitive instincts and habits that have surfaced in our daily lifestyle that make themselves known.

              Overall, the central idea in the book The Octopus Scientists is that the the meal remains of an octopus help scientists study octopi better. They provide data for a multitude of important factors about octopi, such as where and when to study octopi, how to find octopuses for closer observations, and how to accurately classify them with the right traits. Moreover, octopi bear a striking resemblance in nature to early humans, many habits of which still carry over in today’s modern society. The basic needs and instinct of an animal, to eat, to create or find shelter, and to mate to continue the species are all prominent features in today’s life. While we may not realize it, we share much more than a common ancestor with octopi.

Image Sources:

“On The Trails: Middens.” Juneauempire.com. N. p., 2018. Web. 24 Feb. 2018.

“Triassic Kraken | Microecos.” Microecos.wordpress.com. N. p., 2018. Web. 24 Feb. 2018.

I.gr-assets.com. N. p., 2018. Web. 24 Feb. 2018.

Tags: Blog Post, Central Idea, Humanities, Non-Fiction Book, Sy Montgomery, The octopus has very many succERS, The Octopus Scientist, Written