Thaumoctopus mimicus
Mimic Octopus
©Darren Coker: Mimic Octopus at Lizard Island
©Darren Coker: Mimic Octopus at Lizard Island
©Darren Coker: Mimic Octopus at Lizard Island
Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Mollusca
Class
Cephalopoda
Order
Octopoda
Family
Octopodidae
Genus
Thaumoctopus
Species
Thaumoctopus mimicus
Colours
Distinguishing features
Small horns protrude from each eye. The octopus' natural color is light brown/beige, but usually takes on a more noticeable hue of striped white and brown to scare off predators by imitating poisonous species and vicious, territorial sea creatures. (Wikipedia)
Size
- Up to 60 cm (Length of specimen)
Synonyms
Comments
This is Octopus sp. 19 in Norman (2000).
by Anne Hoggett
Local abundance
- Lizard Island: Rare, only one record by Darren Coker in 2012. The Lizard Island specimen is the only published record of the species in Australia.
Behaviour
It possesses chromatophores as well as the unique behavior of taking shape of various objects and animals. It is the only currently known marine animal to be able to mimic such a wide variety of animals. Many animals can imitate a different species to avoid or intimidate predators, but Thaumoctopus mimicus is the only one that can imitate as diverse a range of forms in order to elude predators. (Wikipedia)
Web resources
References
- Coker, D.J. (2013). Documentation of the mimic octopus Thaumoctopus mimicus in the Great Barrier Reef, Australia, Marine Biodiversity Records, 6: e14. LIRS catalog number 1610.
- Norman, M. (2000). Cephalopods: A world guide ConchBooks, Hackenheim, Germany.