Octopus goes “Gilligan’s Island” making a home out of coconut shells

By on Dec 15, 2009

veined-octopus-coconut-shelter

In a scene more reminiscent of a Gilligan’s Island, octopuses are caught on film digging up discarded coconut shells from the ocean floor and scampering away with their booty to build shelters that would have made “The Professor” proud. The veined octopuses (Amphioctopus marginatus) were being studied off the coast of Northern Sulawesi and Bali in veined-octopus-coconut-shelterIndonesia when they were caught on video digging out the halved shells left over from human use that settled on the sea floor. It marks the first time an invertebrate was documented using a tool – sophisticated behavior generally limited to mammals and birds. The cephalopods snatch up the wayward shell then making its pitch for the Heisman Trophy, scampering away with the shell tucked away like Alabama running back Mark Ingram heading for the end zone—some 20 meters! Later they are seen tipping one shell upwards, blowing out the mud and then using another on top of that as a makeshift roof for a cozy little shelter. From camouflage to homebuilder, the octopus sure is an amazing creature. Hats off to Australia’s Museum Victoria researchers Julian Finn and Mark Norman for bringing us this entertaining and unique video. Their research, “Defensive tool use in a coconut-carrying octopus’,” was co-authored by Tom Tregenza and published in the journal Current Biology.

via [BBC, Museum Victoria]

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  • Mike

    Now I thought the lyric “You put the lime in the coconut…” was weird, what the hell is up with this!

  • Mike

    Now I thought the lyric “You put the lime in the coconut…” was weird, what the hell is up with this!

  • http://www.aqua-digital.com AQua Digital Inc

    And the Octopus sang!

    I’ve got a lovely bunch of coconuts
    There they are all standing in a row
    Big ones, small ones, some as big as your head
    Give them a twist a flick of the wrist
    That’s what the showman said
    I’ve got a lovely bunch of coconuts
    Every ball you throw will make me rich
    There stands my wife, the idol of me life
    Singing roll a bowl a ball a penny a pitch
    Roll a bowl a ball a penny a pitch
    Roll a bowl a ball a penny a pitch
    Roll a bowl a ball, roll a bowl a ball
    Singing roll a bowl a ball a penny a pitch
    I’ve got a lovely bunch of coconuts (they’re lovely)
    There they are all standing in a row (one, two, three, four)
    Big ones, small ones, some as big as your head (and bigger)
    Give them a twist a flick of the wrist
    That’s what the showman said
    I’ve got a lovely bunch of coconuts
    Every ball you throw will make me rich
    There stands my wife, the idol of me life
    Singing roll a bowl a ball a penny a pitch (all together now)
    Roll a bowl a ball a penny a pitch (harmony)
    Roll a bowl a ball a penny a pitch
    Roll a bowl a ball, roll a bowl a ball
    Singing roll a bowl a ball a penny a pitch

  • http://www.aqua-digital.com AQua Digital Inc

    And the Octopus sang!

    I’ve got a lovely bunch of coconuts
    There they are all standing in a row
    Big ones, small ones, some as big as your head
    Give them a twist a flick of the wrist
    That’s what the showman said
    I’ve got a lovely bunch of coconuts
    Every ball you throw will make me rich
    There stands my wife, the idol of me life
    Singing roll a bowl a ball a penny a pitch
    Roll a bowl a ball a penny a pitch
    Roll a bowl a ball a penny a pitch
    Roll a bowl a ball, roll a bowl a ball
    Singing roll a bowl a ball a penny a pitch
    I’ve got a lovely bunch of coconuts (they’re lovely)
    There they are all standing in a row (one, two, three, four)
    Big ones, small ones, some as big as your head (and bigger)
    Give them a twist a flick of the wrist
    That’s what the showman said
    I’ve got a lovely bunch of coconuts
    Every ball you throw will make me rich
    There stands my wife, the idol of me life
    Singing roll a bowl a ball a penny a pitch (all together now)
    Roll a bowl a ball a penny a pitch (harmony)
    Roll a bowl a ball a penny a pitch
    Roll a bowl a ball, roll a bowl a ball
    Singing roll a bowl a ball a penny a pitch

  • http://reefbuilders.com Brian Blank

    Mike, I was playing with trying to tie in that song but Gilligan’s Island beat it out ;)

    I love the way that lil puppy scurries away “…he breaks though the tackle, at the fifty, the forty, spins awya, to the thirty, the twenty, ten, TOUCHDOWN CEPHALOPOD!”

  • http://reefbuilders.com Brian Blank

    Mike, I was playing with trying to tie in that song but Gilligan’s Island beat it out ;)

    I love the way that lil puppy scurries away “…he breaks though the tackle, at the fifty, the forty, spins awya, to the thirty, the twenty, ten, TOUCHDOWN CEPHALOPOD!”

  • http://www.aqua-digital.com AQua Digital Inc

    Bet ya cant tell im a born and bred Londoner from the UK to know those lyrics ;)

  • http://www.aqua-digital.com AQua Digital Inc

    Bet ya cant tell im a born and bred Londoner from the UK to know those lyrics ;)

  • Rich Ross

    Cool stuff – two things to keep in mind
    This kind of behavior has been reported for 10 years or so
    and, the jury is out if this is actually tool use. There are plenty of octo predators that live in the muck and the coconut could well be defensive while stilting.
    Super cool footage!

  • Rich Ross

    Cool stuff – two things to keep in mind
    This kind of behavior has been reported for 10 years or so
    and, the jury is out if this is actually tool use. There are plenty of octo predators that live in the muck and the coconut could well be defensive while stilting.
    Super cool footage!

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  • http://wwww.orshe.com Will Kendall

    Mr or Mrs Webmaster i just got a popup from my antivirus when i opened your blog do you know why this occured? Could it maybe from your advertising or something? Thanks, really strange i hope it was harmless?

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