A bizarre but funny video of two octopuses engaging in a mating ritual was caught on camera. One expert attempted to explain the rare and hilarious encounter between the two cephalopods.
Two Octopuses in Funny Mating Ritual
National Geographic's miniseries "Secrets of the Octopus" featured new facts about the octopuses. Aside from that, it featured an intimate moment between the two, which didn't turn out as what the male octopus hoped to be.
The footage showed an algae octopus (Abdopus aculeatus) in the shallow water on the island of Bunaken in Indonesia. He spotted a female octopus and began courtship using a passing cloud display -- a communication when an octopus' skin changes color to communicate with a potential partner.
According to series producer Adam Geiger, "passing cloud display means different things to different cephalopods." However, in the case of the algae octopus, the passing cloud display is an expression of interest to let the potential mate know it is available.
He moves, propping up a papilla—a skin protrusion the octopus can regulate to vary its body shape—above his eye after the female reacts with her own vibrant show.
According to Alex Schnell, a videographer and marine biologist, the animal also makes a black-and-white striped pattern on its back, suggesting that it is ready to mate or engage in combat. When the female appears receptive, he extends his unique hectocotylus mating arm. He clumsily tries to locate her mantle cavity, a muscular structure that houses the essential organs and is where sperm is deposited during mating.
However, it seems like he takes too long to locate her mantle cavity because, in the clip, the female gets "impatient and hungry," according to the narrator. The male continues to cling to the female with his hectocotylus, and she drags him as she starts to hunt for food.
"It was surprising, and comical, to witness mating on the move," Geiger said. "The female [is] essentially dragging the male - hanging on for dear life - over the reef while she got on with other things. The Algae octopus was the only species in the series we witnessed mating this way, but who knows, others may do this, too."
Another Bizarre Octopus Mating Ritual
A different video featured another bizarre mating ritual between two octopuses. However, this time, it wasn't hilarious but disturbing.
The clip featured a giant Maori octopus enjoying a fabulous day when a female octopus hiding under a ledge grabbed him. She mated with him and then strangled him.
Male octopuses are aware that it can happen and usually avoid it. Unfortunately, some do not make it out alive.
Octopus mothers also engage in alarming behavior when they reproduce. In most species, an octopus mother stops eating when her eggs grow closer to hatching, and they become self-destructive.
She will break out of her protective shell around her children and will rip at her skin, chew portions of her arms, or beat herself up against a rock.
Scientists have identified the molecules that appear to regulate this lethal, frenzied state. When an octopus lays eggs, its body produces more steroid hormones because of alterations in the synthesis and utilization of cholesterol. This biochemical change will ultimately be fatal to the octopus.
According to Z. Yan Wang, an assistant professor at the University of Washington teaching biology and psychology, some of the alterations might allude to mechanisms that underlie lifespan in invertebrates more broadly.
RELATED ARTICLE : How Smart Is an Octopus? Marine Mollusk Has the Largest Brain-to-Body Ratio Among Invertebrates
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