Flapjack octopus3/11/2023 The image below shows the flapjack octopus ( Opisthoteuthis sp.) on exhibit. In their exhibit at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, these un-described cephalopods live in a tank specially designed to imitate the cold, low-oxygen environment of their deep-sea habitat. The fins above their eyes helps them steer! They have a well defined web just under their tentacles that allows them to parachute around the water. Since they’re so cute, I thought I could name it the Opistoteuthis adorabilis,” Bush told ABC News. “I was thinking about what my options are, and I wanted it to be something indicative of the characteristic of the species. Until they know what to formally call it, researchers are simply referring to it as the “flapjack octopus,” which belongs with its cousins in the Opisthoteuthis family. Stephanie Bush, a postdoctoral fellow at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI), is researching this cartoony creature and has the difficult task of finding it an appropriate name. The funny thing is they don’t have a name yet! (Left) Pac-Man Ghosts, (Center) flapjack octopus, (Right) Pearl from Finding Nemo They are small, fragile, and gelatinous, with relatively large eyes. In fact, very little is known about the life history of these animals. The views expressed are those of the author(s) and are not necessarily those of Scientific American.This adorable seven-inch, deep sea octopus is a species rarely seen by humans. In the meantime, enjoy some rare footage of the O. Next, we will check in on the strange and wonderful blanket octopus ( Tremoctopus), which has some extra large ladies and super tiny males think a human-sized gal and something like a walnut-sized guy. calypso males seem to outgrow the females-the biggest fellows reaching 48 centimeters from head to arm tip and 5.4 kilograms (the females were a slight 34 centimeters long and 1.7 kilograms). The family in which they reside, the Opisthoteuthidae, are also sometimes called umbrella octopuses, for their wide webs that extend much of the way down their arms. As a genus, these Opisthoteuthis octopuses are super-flat and generally red or orange in color, earning them the nickname flapjack devilfishes. californiana (which, in turn, is perhaps even more familiar as a model for the character Pearl in Disney's Finding Nemo). calypso is a close relative of the better-known flapjack octopus O. Early octopod fossils from more than 290 million years ago suggest the presence of similar fins and suckerless arms. These cirrate octopuses (in the suborder cirrina), with their earlike fins and relatively simple arms, might be the relics of the octopus family. The cirri themselves are not longer five millimeters each but might play an important role-like squid's hooks-in bringing in dinner. But this cirrate octopus also has small hairlike "cirri" on each appendage. Adults might have fewer than 60 suckers on each webby arm (compared with giant Pacific octopuses' 280 strong grippers per arm). calypso seem to feed mostly on small, easy-to-grab animals, such as small crustaceans and marine worms that live on and just above the mucky surface. Most video footage of their Opisthoteuthis relatives looks like they are moving in slow motion-at least to our eyes. These certainly aren't the speediest octopuses in the sea. calypso in the eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean at a wide range of depths-between 365 and 2,208 meters below the surface. Since its distinction as a species, records have placed the curious O. The authors of a recent review paper, published online in February in Mediterranean Marine Science, found just 12 reports of the species over 16 years (1994-2010)-and all were from dedicated scientific samplings. It has still proven so rare, however, that it has yet to be granted a common name. calypso was at last recognized as a separate species in 2002. Once assumed to be one in the same as close relative O. Today, we try to catch a glimpse cirrate octopus Opisthoteuthis calypso, which seems to fly along the deep ocean floor under the power of its winglike fins. Last time we met the super-fecund cephalopod the football octopus ( Ocythoe tuberculata). But that doesn't mean that they are not of great importance to science-and the ocean's intricate food web. The many octopus species that live beyond the reach of vacationing snorkelers, scuba diving researchers and even near-shore commercial fisheries are relative unknowns compared with the more familiar shallow-water species.
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