Octopus attacked by leather jackets

[Leslie Harris]

Thanks to Martha Edge (Divebums) who posted the link to this incredible video. A school of leather jackets chase an octopus first on the bottom & then up into the water column before reducing it to a lump of unrecognizable protein. Enjoy!

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=2cf_1273011108

[scottg]

I watched that video, it was unbelieveable!! A definite must see.

I never knew reef fish hunted like that, I just thought they ate plants and fish food...good thing leather jackets aren't much bigger!

[smb2]

Do you think it was a dying female after hatching her young ones??

[CompuDude]

Wow, that's amazing.

I realize it's the circle of life and all that, but I still feel bad for the poor octo.

I never would have guessed an octo that big could get pwned like that, though!

[bvanant]

Wow, that's amazing.

I realize it's the circle of life and all that, but I still feel bad for the poor octo.

I never would have guessed an octo that big could get pwned like that, though!

If she had just come out of her hole after spawning she would have been totally weak and ready to die since she hadn't eaten for several months. In some octopus the embryonic development takes 2 months or more (http://www.thecephalopodpage.org/Marine ... ropus.html) and it is generally thought that octopus live fast and die young (Meisel, D.V., Byrne, R.A., and Kuba, M. 2006. Contrasting activity patterns of two related octopus species, Octopus macropus and Octopus vulgaris. Journal of Comparative Psychology. 120(3): 191-97. )
Bill

[Leslie Harris]

That was a healthy, fast-moving octopus who made a big mistake. If it had stayed on the bottom it might have found shelter. Completely exposed up in the water column like that, well, it was sashimi time!

[smb2]

http://www.smugmug.com/gallery/11270927 ... 8549_y3jyb

I can't match the video, but here is a little Caribbean territorial battle.

[scottg]

stanley, that's quite an impressive sequence. they were really having a battle!