Callistoctopus macropus

Atlantic white-spotted octopus
Callistoctopus macropus
Conservation status
Least Concern(IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Cephalopoda
Order:	Octopoda
Family:	Octopodidae
Genus:	Callistoctopus
Species:	C. macropus
Binomial name
Callistoctopus macropus (Risso,1826)
Synonyms
Octopus alderiiVerany, 1851 Octopus didynamusRafinesque, 1814 Octopus frayedusRafinesque, 1814 Octopus granosusBlainville, 1826 Octopus leschenaultiid'Orbigny, 1826(dubious synonym) Octopus longimanusFérussac, 1839inFérussac &d'Orbigny,1834–1848 Octopus macropodusSanGiovanni, 1829 Octopus macropusRisso, 1826 Octopus verrilli palliataRobson, 1929 Polypus macropus(Risso, 1826) Tremoctopus scalenusHoyle, 1904

Callistoctopus macropus,also known as theAtlantic white-spotted octopus,white-spotted octopus,grass octopusorgrass scuttle,is a species ofoctopusfound in shallow areas of theMediterranean Sea,the warmer parts of the eastern and western Atlantic Ocean, theCaribbean Sea,and the Indo-Pacific region. This octopus feeds on small organisms which lurk among the branches ofcorals.

Description

Callistoctopus macropusgrows to amantlelength of 20 cm (8 in) with a total length of 150 cm (59 in). The first pair of arms are a metre or so long, and are much longer than the remaining three pairs. The arms are all connected by a shallow web. This octopus is red, with white blotches on its body, and paired white spots on its arms. When it is disturbed, its colour becomes more intense,deimatic behaviourwhich may make it appear threatening to a potential predator.

Distribution and habitat

Populations ofCallistoctopus macropusform aspecies complexfound in the Mediterranean Sea, the temperate and tropical Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. It is also present in the Pacific and Indian Oceans. It lives near the shore at depths down to about 17 m (56 ft). Its favoured habitat is sand, rubble orseagrass meadows,and it sometimes buries itself under the sand.

Ecology

Callistoctopus macropus

Callistoctopus macropusis more fastidious in its diet than is thecommon octopus(Octopus vulgaris), a species with which it shares some of its range and which feeds by day.Callistoctopus macropus,by contrast, feeds by night.Its method of feeding is to move from one clump of branching coral to another, oftenAcroporaorStylophoraspp.. The octopus wraps itsmantlearound a coral head and probes with its arms among the branches, searching for the small fish and invertebrates that seek protection there. It has been found that a number ofgroupers(familySerranidae) and otherpredatoryfish associate with the octopus when it is feeding, pouncing on small organisms that are flushed from the coral head by the octopus.

For many years, the breeding habits of this octopus were not known. Then a female was observed attaching short-stalked eggs, measuring 4 by 1.2 mm (0.16 by 0.05 in), to a hard surface forming a sheet of eggs. The female then brooded the eggs, caring for them by aerating them and keeping them clean. The female octopus stopped feeding at the time the eggs were laid and died soon after they had hatched, as is common among octopus species. Theplanktoniclarvae which emerged from the eggs were each about 5.5 mm (0.2 in) in length with short, seven-suckered arms. They fed onzooplanktonsuch as crustacean larvae.

References

• Norman M.D. & Hochberg F.G. (2005)The current state of Octopus taxonomy.Phuket Marine Biological Center Research Bulletin 66:127–154

External links

• Photos ofCallistoctopus macropuson Sealife Collection