If the strangeness of the Universe fascinates us, it is the same with the different forms of life found in the abyssal depths of the Ocean. As with this strange blue octopus captured on video by scientists, in 2023, during the Trans-Pacific Transit Expedition as part of an ocean research program.
These had three very specific goals in addition “to explore the unexplored” as the saying goes British Geological Survey (BGS). To deepen human knowledge of the Ocean, scientists have therefore:
- Studied the little-known fauna of the abyss, such as the strange blue octopus
- Filling in the holes in the geological maps of the abyss
- Analyzed dynamic ocean systems over a wide latitudinal and longitudinal area
As reported by BGS“almost all expeditions venturing below 3000 meters have had surprises in store”. As evidenced, Cirrothauma magna Or Big-Eye Jellyhead in English, a blue octopus which inhabits the abyss and which has a very particular way of moving.
An abyssal blue octopus that “bouncing”
At 4800 meters below the surface of the Ocean, there are not many souls living. There is no light at all and the pressure is extremely strong. So don't expect to find species there that need photosynthesis to develop, such as algae or animal species that must frequently come to the surface.
On the other hand, this does not mean that there is nothing. Quite the contrary. There is probably even more to it than we think. And to the vast bestiary of the abyss, is added Cirrothauma magnaa blue octopus that “bouncing”.
It is thanks to a scientific station descended in free fall to the bottom of the Ocean that scientists were able to capture, on video, the movements of this strange octopus.
In a 1997 study, scientists explained its mode of movement using a diagram published in a study published in Marine Biology:
photo credit: Marine Biology
Condemned to bounce to eat
If his mode of movement is enough to make you laugh in the video, you should know that we are witnesses to his “hunting technique”. Indeed, by bouncing like this, the blue octopus of the abyss is looking for potential prey.
With each “leap” into the abyss, the octopus captures any prey that may be in its path when it lands. As long as she doesn't find anything, she continues to hop around the ocean floor.
Source : ScienceAlert
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