The genetic make-up of an octopus is so vastly different from any other form of life on earth, that some imaginative zoologists have gone as far as labelling it an alien life form! This of course suggests that the octopus is not even originally from this planet, which seems quite far fetched. Regardless of whether or not the octopus is actually an alien being, it has been found to be one of the most mystifying species in the animal kingdom, as no other invertebrates, i.e. animals with no backbone, display the intelligence of an octopus. In 2015, scientists managed to decode the genome of the octopus. Through studying all 2.7 billion characters of its genetic code, they found that its incredible intelligence developed much earlier than that of vertebrates. In fact, octopuses emerged on planet earth about 400 million years ago, 230 million years before mammals.
“They were the first intelligent beings on the planet.”said Clifton Ragsdale of the University of Chicago, who helped lead the research project. It’s this intelligence, and indeed some almost “supernatural” powers that fascinate people like Ragsdale. For example, they’ve been shown to be able to figure out ways of escaping enclosures, even by using their “suckers” to grip and twist the lid of a closed jar in which it is trapped. They can fit through incredibly small spaces, despite their large size since they have no backbone, and can also hunt prey while it’s on land by jumping from the water at a high speed. They’ve even been documented using shells and other marine objects as tools! These traits all display incredible levels of intelligence, but making it almost supernatural is the octopus’ ability to simply detach one of its limbs if attacked and trapped! And finally, the octopus is a master of camouflage and shape shifting. It can mimic other animals and even the environment around, making it almost totally invisible...
It’s time to treat the octopus with some serious respect, it seems!
