Sorry, What: Turns Out Octopuses Have Favourite Arms

OctopusOctopuses are shape-shifting, triple-hearted, literally blue-blooded ocean creatures that have baffled scientists for decades. They have a brain in each of their arms (because, by the way, they’re not technically tentacles) – arms which can change colour pretty much at will. And now, scientists have found out that octopuses seem to have favourite arms for different tasks, too. A paper published in Scientific Reports found that though all octopus arms seemed equally useful, their owners chose some to do certain jobs over others anyway.Why do octopuses have favourite arms?The researchers found that though all eight arms seem able to perform 12 different movement patterns about as well as each other, octopuses used their front arms more for exploration. They preferred to use their back arms for movement, however. Movement patterns included shortening, elongating, twisting, and bending.Dr Chelsea O. Bennice, the study’s lead author, said: “Observing them in the wild, we saw octopuses use different combinations of arm actions – sometimes just one arm for tasks like grabbing food, and other times multiple arms working together for behaviours like crawling or launching a parachute attack – a hunting technique they use to catch prey”. She added, “When octopuses move across an open environment, they skillfully use multiple arms to stay camouflaged from predators, such as the moving rock trick or looking like floating seaweed.” Their arm strength, flexibility, and adaptability are key for jobs like building dens, fighting off predators, and even competing with rival males, she continued.Researchers hope this’ll lead to more discoveriesOctopuses have previously inspired machine intelligence and moving robots. So perhaps it’s no wonder Dr Bennice said this paper might inspire further research into fields other than marine biology.“Understanding these natural behaviours not only deepens our knowledge of octopus biology but also opens exciting new avenues in fields like neuroscience, animal behaviour and even soft robotics inspired by these remarkable creatures,” she said. Related...Wait — Why Are Octopuses Punching Fish?I Just Found Out Octopuses Don't Have Tentacles, And I Need To Lie DownFish And Chip Shop 'Vinegar' Isn't Usually Vinegar – Here's What You're Getting Instead

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