The world’s largest ‘octopus garden’ has been discovered in the deep sea of Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, California.
Scientists on the Exploration Vessel Nautilus piloted a remote-controlled submersible within this protected area, above an inactive volcano named Davidson Seamount. Here they came across an unexpected and exciting discovery.
An enormous group of octopuses were nestled together along the volcanic rock formation, just over 3km below the ocean’s surface. The species have been identified as Muusoctopus robustus, a small octopus species that doesn’t have an ink sack.
A group of the Muusoctopus robustus protecting eggs (Source: National Geographic)
Most of the animals were in an inverted position, indicating that they are brooding females. The females cling to the rocky ocean bed in this postition to protect their bodies and eggs. Scientists believe that there are over 1000 octopuses in the group.
“This has never been discovered on the West Coast of the US, never in our sanctuary and never in the world with these numbers,” said Chad King, a lead scientist on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Nautilus exploration vessel.
Octopuses were originally thought to be solitary animals, with little understanding of their nesting habits. This discovery will assist researchers in gaining more insight into the mysterious life of this aquatic animal. A similar discovery was made earlier this year in Costa Rica but the number of octopuses found where about a tenth of the size of this group.
Watch the footage of the scientists on the Nautilus exploration vessel discovering the brooding females below:
