First Impressions Count

The amazing Mimic Octopus (Thaumoctopus mimicus) has to be one of the most incredible and fascinating animals known to man! This beautiful octopus is not only able to change its skin colour and texture in order to blend in with their surroundings, similarly as most octopi are famous for (this is done via pigment sacs known as chromatophores), but it also has the ability to take the shape of not only objects, such as coral and rock, but a number of other species. It is this 'extra feature' that makes the mimic octopus totally unique from all of its other relatives. In fact, the mimic octopus is the only known aquatic species able to impersonate an array of different sea animals via both behaviour and shape. Although many animals can imitate a different species to avoid or intimidate predators, the mimic octopus is the only one who can choose from many types of forms depending on what predator they are trying to elude.

The mimic octopus was first discovered off the coast of Sulawesi, Indonesia, in the early 1990’s, primarily being found in the warm shallow murky waters and muddy seabeds about 15 m deep. Originally this species was thought to only inhabit the islands of Indonesia, until one was spotted recently near the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. That said, the mimic octopus is thought to prefer river mouths and estuaries, as opposed to reefs, which are usually preferred by most types of octopi to give more shelter. This has to due to the fact that as it is able to impersonate poisonous fish, it can therefore inhabit more 'open water' without the risk of predation. 

The mimic octopus can be classified as both a hunter and a forager. A hunter because it has been observed having the ability to stalk and catch small fish. A forager, as more than often, it can be seen searching for prey and using its slender tentacles to reach into crevices in coral, as well as holes in the sand, and use its suction cups to capture small crustaceans and worms.

The Mimic octopus is a relatively small octopus, growing to an average length of about 60cm, and each of their tentacles grow to be around 65cm long with a diameter similar to a pencil. The octopus’s natural colour is light brown/beige, but is usually a more noticeable striped white and brown colour, used to scare off predators by appearing to be poisonous. In fact, it is still unknown as to whether the mimic octopus is indeed poisonous to its predators? 

A mimic octopus’s strategy is quite impressive. Mimicry is a common survival strategy in nature but the mimic octopus is the first to mimic more than one species. It is still unknown in exactly just how many animals the mimic octopus knows how to morph into, although it is thought to be up to an incredible 13 species! What is known, is that most of the known animals that it chooses to mimic are poisonous. Examples of the more common species observed are a lionfish, flatfish, sea snake, jellyfish, crab and even sea anemone! 

In the case of a lionfish, the octopus changes colour and shapes its eight legs to look like the venomous spines. When under attack, a mimic octopus may hide completely in a hole except for two of its legs, which it sticks out in opposite directions. What remains in view is a long thin object with white and black bands running across the elongated body, in other words, a 'sea snake'. An example of this has been observed when an octopus was attacked by territorial damselfishes, resulting in it mimicking the banded sea snake, a known predator of these exact damselfishes! By pulling all of its arms together on one side, and flattening out his body while moving forward along the ocean floor, the mimic octopus makes itself appear like a flatfish. In order to scare off predators, a mimic octopus will act as a jellyfish by puffing up its head and letting its arms trail behind it. The octopus will then impersonate the motions of a jellyfish swimming by going to the surface and then slowly sinking with its arms spread evenly around its body. When hunting it can morph itself to imitate a crab, posing as an apparent mate, only to devour its deceived suitor once close enough. And last, but by no means least, by raising all of its arms above its head with each arm bent in a curved zig-zag shape, it resembles the lethal tentacles of a fish-eating sea anemone and deters many fish from coming too close. Simply ingenious!

See more http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8oQBYw6xxc