Summary ²

The octopus (/ˈɒktəpəs/ or ~/pʊs/) is a soft-bodied, eight-armed mollusc of the order Octopoda. Around 300 species are recognised and the order is grouped within the class Cephalopoda with squids, cuttlefish and nautiloids. Like other cephalopods, the octopus is bilaterally symmetric with two eyes and a beak, with its mouth at the centre point of the arms (which are sometimes mistakenly called "tentacles"). The soft body can rapidly alter its shape, enabling octopuses to squeeze thr

Sources and Credits

1. (c) damn_unique, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), https://www.flickr.com/photos/damn_unique/8093376393/
2. (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Octopoda

More Info

• iNat taxon page
• Biodiversity Heritage Library
• BOLD Systems BIN search
• California Academy of Sciences
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
• iNaturalist Cephalopod Working Group
• World Register of Marine Species

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