Blue-Ringed Octopus

Blue-Ringed Octopus
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Toxic Terrors
Previous	Sea Snake
Next	Coral Snakes
Card	5
Creature Features
Species	Hapalochlaena lunulata
Size	Length up to 8 in., including body and tentacles; Weight up to 3 ozs.
Habitat	Rock pools and coral reefs in Australia
Prey	Shellfish, small bony fish, crabs and other crustaceans
Lifespan	About 2 years
Did You Know?
Octopus tentacles that are cut off in battles with predators will grow back over time.

The blue-ringed octopus seems tiny and delicate, but this crafty sea creature has enough poison to kill an animal as big as a horse with a single bite. The octopus often hides in and around coral reefs and when threatened, shows off its blue rings to warn off attackers.

Packing Poison: This octopus’ two poison glands are each about as big as the creature’s brain. The poison, one of the deadliest of all known toxins, attacks a victim’s central nervous system, causing paralysis and a complete body shutdown.

Fatal Beauty: The blue rings make the octopus startlingly attractive, but the colors are a warning. The blue rings enlarge and flash to advertise the creature’s toxic threat.

Double Whammy

Each octopus tentacle has about 40 suckers.

Having no bones in its body, the blue-ringed octopus can hide in very tiny spaces. When prey happens by, it has a choice of how to make a kill. It can spring out and deliver a poisonous bite, or it can simply release its toxins into the water, killing fish as they take in the poisonous cloud through their gills. The octopus uses its sharp break to chew up the dead prey.

20/20 and Beyond: The blue-ringed octopus hunts mainly by sight. It can see so clearly through the water that it instantly recognizes whether passing prey is a favorite food.

Mad Grabber: The creature can’t see into rock crevices, however, so it uses its long tentacles to search for food and grip prey tightly. The suckers on these long arms are sensitive to texture and even taste to let the octopus know when it has found something good to eat.

Blue for Danger

1. Young reef fish, such as this coral trout, are often too inexperienced to know the danger the blue-ringed octopus presents.
2. Going in on the attack, the fish is soon caught in an eight-legged grasp and a bite from the octopus sends toxins through its body.
3. The coral trout is instantly paralyzed. It has learned too late not to mess with the deadly octopus.

Trading Card

Blue-Ringed Octopus The tiny blue-ringed octopus can kill creatures ten times its size. Its beautiful appearance is a warning that the animal is poisonous. Say What? There is no antidote for the blue-ringed octopus’ poison. Powers Subtract 1 Point from Opponent’s Defense Roll Stats Life 90 Attack 5 Defense 8

Trivia

• The Blue-Ringed Octopus is the only octopus to not be in the Monsters of the Deep category.
• The blue-ringed octopus is mentioned on the Pufferfish knowledge card, as the two creatures share the same type of toxins.
• While the blue-ringed octopus is both poisonous and venomous, its cards confuse the bite for being poisonous, when it's the latter.
• It is one of two modern cephalopods not in Monsters of the Deep, the other being the Opalescent Squid.
• The blue-ringed octopus is featured on several Monster Mania cards:
  • The blue-ringed octopus's trading card is featured on Monster Mania 4.
  • The octopus itself is featured in Coral Confusion on Monster Mania 13.
• The species listed on the card is the Greater Blue-Ringed Octopus.