Meet the octopus

Octopuses have a central brain plus a cluster of nerves in each arm, so their arms can partly solve problems by themselves.

🏡 Oceans everywhere, from rock pools to the deep sea.🍽️ Crabs, shellfish and fish.⏳ 1–5 years — remarkably short for such a clever animal.🛡️ Octopus populations are fished heavily, and octopus farming is controversial and banned in some places.

Friends and family

Most octopuses live alone, though some species gather in small 'cities'.

A mother octopus guards her eggs for months without eating.

How they talk

They talk in colour and texture, changing skin patterns in a fraction of a second.

How clever are they?

Octopuses open jars from the inside, escape tanks and recognise individual keepers.

What they feel

Octopuses avoid places where they were hurt and seek out comfort — evidence used in sentience reviews.

Superpower: Skin that sees

Octopus skin contains light-sensing proteins, so in a way they can 'see' with their whole body.

👀 See the world through their eyes

Touch

Each sucker tastes as well as grips.

Sight

They're colourblind, yet match colours perfectly — scientists are still working out how.

🤓 Did you know?

An octopus has three hearts and blue blood.
Octopuses were recognised as sentient in UK law in 2022.
How octopuses see colour while being colourblind is still a mystery.scientists are still studying this