How Does an Octopus Swim?
An octopus can dart quickly through the water. To swim, an octopus draws water into its body. Then it pushes a jet of water out of a tube, called a funnel, propelling itself forward. The harder an octopus pushes the water out, the faster it moves. Octopus Releasing a Cloud of Ink (When frightened by a predator, an octopus shoots out a cloud of dark ink into the water. The ink confuses a predator so the octopus can dart away to safety.) SELF DEFENSE Seals, eels, and other sea animals prey on octopuses. An octopus’s main method of defense is to shoot a cloud of dark ink into the water. The ink cloud confuses the attacker, and the octopus jets away. Octopuses can also change color rapidly when they are in danger. They change color to fit in with their surroundings. This helps them to hide from prey. HOW BIG ARE OCTOPUSES? There are many different species (kinds) of octopus. The smallest octopuses are only about as long as your little finger. The biggest octopus is the giant Pacific octopu
Although an octopus has eight arms, or tentacles, it does not use them for swimming. These tentacles are only for crawling along the ocean floor and for catching food. In order to move through the water, the octopus draws water into a cavity in its body, then squirts it out in jets through a tube, or siphon, just under its head.
