Numerous legends of sea monsters have existed since ancient times. But even today there are eyewitnesses ready to confirm the most incredible hypotheses. Judging by the descriptions of sailors and scientists, giant octopuses still exist. They hide in the deep waters of the oceans and coastal caves, only occasionally catching the eye of a man, scaring fishermen and divers.
Information that giant octopuses really live in the sea comes from all over the world. So, the largest octopus, caught from the deeps of the sea, reached 22 meters in length, and the diameter of its suction cups reached 15 cm. What are these monsters and why are they still not explored?
What do we know about octopuses?
These are cephalopods, their limbs grow directly from the head, can take any position, the mollusk captures the victim with them. The mantle covers the gills and internal organs.
The head is small with round expressive eyes. To move, the octopus captures the mantle with water and abruptly pushes it through the funnel under the head. Thanks to this push, he moves backwards. Together with water, ink comes out of the funnel - the waste products of an octopus. The mouth of this marine creature is very interesting. It is a beak, the tongue is covered with a horn grater with many small, but very sharp teeth. One of the teeth (central) is noticeably larger than the rest, it octopus drills holes in shells and shells of animals.
Giant octopus: who is he?
This is a representative of the Octopus dofleini family, living on the rocky shores of the Pacific Ocean. The largest specimen, which was described and entered in the Guinness Book of Records, had a limb length of 3.5 m (excluding the mantle). Late testimonies of sailors prove that there were larger animals with tentacles up to 5 meters long. These giant octopuses terrified eyewitnesses, although they did not pose a certain danger to humans. The diet of these marine inhabitants does not include human meat. But they can scare a person. In an irritated state, the mollusk changes color up to maroon, takes a terrifying pose, raising its tentacles, and ejects dark ink.
The giant octopus, the photo of which is presented above, has already released ink from a special ink channel and is ready to rush into battle. If an octopus throws its limbs behind its head and puts forward the suction cups, it means that it is preparing to repulse the enemy - this is a typical pose to repel an attack.
Are giant octopuses dangerous?
Aggression of this animal can be caused if you grab it roughly or try to pull it out of the hole. Cases of attacks on humans are not uncommon, but no lethal outcomes have been recorded from tentacle suffocation. Octopuses are inherently shy, so they usually try to hide when they meet a person. Although in the mating season, some individuals are very aggressive and not afraid of humans. The mollusk Octopus dofleini can bite painfully, but this bite is not toxic, unlike the bite of some tropical relatives. These large octopuses are kept in aquariums of large cities of the world. True, their life span is short: the female dies after the offspring, and the male even earlier, immediately after mating.
