Seven-arm octopus | Haliphron atlanticus | Japan

Leftover piece of a deep-water seven-arm octopus floating at the ocean surface in Ogasawara, perhaps remnants of predation by sperm whales or other toothed cetaceans. The octopus 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.

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Filename: seven-arm-octopus-haliphron-atlanticus-ogasawara-200910-1055.tif
Copyright: Copyright Tony Wu. All rights reserved. No duplication in any form without prior written consent.
Image Size: 5616x3744 / 60.2MB; https://www.photoshelter.com/support/license#rm; https://www.tony-wu.com/contact-tony-wu; Bonin Islands Ogasawara Japan Chichijima Seven-arm octopus Haliphron atlanticus Animalia Mollusca Cephalopoda Octopoda Argonautoida Alloposidae Pacific Cephalopod
Contained in galleries: Sperm Whales, Cephalopods, Marine Life | Japan

Leftover piece of a deep-water seven-arm octopus floating at the ocean surface in Ogasawara, perhaps remnants of predation by sperm whales or other toothed cetaceans. The octopus 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.