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Common Octopus

Octopus vulgaris

Family: Octopodidae | Genus: Octopus

Common octopus (Octopus vulgaris)

Common octopus

Octopus vulgaris

Family: Octopodidae | Genus: Octopus

Marine environments | Carnivorous | Sandy and rocky seabeds | Circumtropical distribution | 60 cm

The common octopus (Octopus vulgaris), also known as the rock octopus, is a highly intelligent cephalopod renowned for its remarkable ability to mimic its surroundings and hide in a wide range of shelters. It has bilateral symmetry and a large, rounded head clearly differentiated from the rest of its body. From this head extend eight arms, each lined with two rows of suckers.

At the centre of the body, surrounded by the arms, lies the mouth with a strong horny beak similar to that of parrots. Individuals usually measure around 60 cm, although they can reach 120 cm, and typically weigh about 3 kg, with the maximum recorded weight reaching 10 kg.

Geographical distribution

The common octopus has a circumtropical distribution, meaning it inhabits temperate and tropical seas around the world.

Common octopus
Common octopus (Octopus vulgaris)
Octopus vulgaris

Icono de Anfibios Habitat

This species occupies a wide variety of marine habitats, from the surface down to depths of around 200 metres. It prefers ecosystems characterised by:

  • Rocky areas with cavities where it can shelter
  • Seabeds and sandy bottoms
  • Shallow coastal waters, although it can be found at depths of up to 150 metres

Icono de Anfibios Lifestyle and behaviour

The common octopus is an extraordinarily intelligent animal capable of learning from experience and retaining both short- and long-term memories. It has been observed using tools and displaying surprising cognitive abilities.

Social behaviour:

  • Mostly solitary

  • Individuals gather only for reproduction

Daily activity:

  • An opportunistic hunter that actively searches for prey

  • Uses its mimicry abilities to change colour and camouflage itself according to its surroundings

  • Surrounds itself with stones and shells to blend in and protect itself

Reproduction:

At the end of winter, mature individuals move into shallow waters to reproduce.

  • Fertilisation is internal: the male inserts his modified third arm (hectocotylus) into the female’s mantle to deposit sperm.
  • The female lays between 100,000 and 500,000 eggs in long strands attached to the ceiling of rocky cavities.
  • She guards and ventilates the eggs for one to two months without feeding, dying shortly after they hatch.

Interaction with its environment:

When threatened, the common octopus releases jets of ink that confuse and deter predators.

It has chromatophores all over its body, allowing it to blend perfectly with its surroundings. Some remarkable facts about the species include:

  • It can regenerate lost limbs, such as arms.
  • Each arm has approximately 240 suckers, and a particularly large sucker can hold up to 15 kg.
  • It possesses a toxin (cephalotoxin) in two salivary glands behind the beak. Its bite is lethal for certain prey and extremely painful.

Icono de Anfibios Diet

In the wild

  • Carnivorous, feeding mainly on crustaceans and molluscs, as well as fish

  • Actively searches for bivalves buried in the sediment

  • Also scavenges carrion

Under human care 

  • A varied diet including fish and squid

  • Feeding is often complemented with environmental enrichment, as the species requires mental stimulation for its wellbeing

Icono de Anfibios Conservation status

Common octopus is classified as LC according to the IUCN

The common octopus (Octopus vulgaris) is classified as Least Concern according to the IUCN Red List.

Main threats:

  • Overfishing, particularly through bottom trawling

  • Unregulated fishing using pots, trammel nets and traps.