The elephantine deep - ocean octopusHaliphron atlanticusdoes not mess around when it comes to dinner . Scientists have observed several of thesecephalopodseatingjellyfishin a way that betoken they could be using their stinging prey as tools to capture other collation , fit in toNew Scientist .
The research worker , spell inScientific Reports , honor threeH. atlanticususing remotely operated submarines from the Monterey Bay Aquarium Institute , as well as by analyze the abdomen contents of already - caught octopuses . They encounter two that seemed to be holding something gelatinlike in their arms , though the research worker could n’t be certain what the target were . A third was definitively holding an egg - yolk jelly in its arms by the bell . The devilfish was swim with the jelly ’s tentacle still hanging out , but it had sting through the bell with its snoot .
Giant deep - ocean octopuses likeH. atlanticus — commonly known as the seven - arm octopus because it keeps one arm permanently tucked away , and which can grow to more than 13 animal foot — are so rarefied to note that scientists do n’t altogether know what they eat , making these sightings particularly exciting . Other octopus species have been known to dine on Pisces or crustaceans , butH. atlanticusapparently targets gelatinous creatures .
free-base on their observations and former records of other cephalopods , such as the palm-shaped octopus , the research worker speculate that beyond using jellies as a food source , H. atlanticuscould be using them as artillery to capture other fair game . “ Haliphronmay place the venter contents of the [ Portuguese man-of-war ] , or even utilise the [ jellyfish ] as a tool to obtain more alimentary quarry that are captured by the outskirt of tentacles buckle within the devilfish arms , ” they write .
However , using their food as a creature might not be the only reason the seven - armed octopuses eat up jelly the way they do . The researchers note that fish and ocean polo-neck also aim the unwritten coat of arms and gonads of jelly for eating , since those are energy - dense areas of the jelly body . This study does n’t determine the case of what these octopus do with those jellies , exactly , but it supply tantalizing evidence that they could be using their solid food to capture other food . It would n’t be their onlyscary - chic acquisition .
[ h / tNew Scientist ]
