Haliphron atlanticus | Seven-arm Octopus

Shown here is what remains of a seven-arm octopus (Haliphron atlanticus), floating at the surface in the open ocean above the Ogasawara trench in the Pacific Ocean. Sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) were foraging in the area. It is possible that one of the whales preyed upon this cephalopod. This species has eight arms, but the hectocotylus (a specially modified arm used in egg fertilization) is coiled in a sac beneath the right eye. Due to this species' thick gelatinous tissue, the arm is easily overlooked, giving the appearance of having only seven arms. Photographed in the Bonin Islands, Japan.

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Filename: haliphron-atlanticus-seven-arm-octopus-remains-200910-1055.tif
Copyright: Copyright Tony Wu. All rights reserved. No duplication, reproduction or usage without prior written permission.
Image Size: 5616x3744 / 120.7MB; https://www.photoshelter.com/support/license#rm; https://www.tony-wu.com/contact-tony-wu; Cephalopod Seven-arm Octopus Animalia Mollusca Cephalopoda Octopodiformes Octopoda Alloposidae Haliphron atlanticus Blob Octopus Septopus Kanten-daco Pacific Japan Bonin Islands Ogasawara
Contained in galleries: Cephalopods, Sperm Whales, Marine Life | Japan

Shown here is what remains of a seven-arm octopus (Haliphron atlanticus), floating at the surface in the open ocean above the Ogasawara trench in the Pacific Ocean. Sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) were foraging in the area. It is possible that one of the whales preyed upon this cephalopod. This species has eight arms, but the hectocotylus (a specially modified arm used in egg fertilization) is coiled in a sac beneath the right eye. Due to this species' thick gelatinous tissue, the arm is easily overlooked, giving the appearance of having only seven arms. Photographed in the Bonin Islands, Japan.