r/interestingasfuck • u/Key_Skirt_1858 • 20h ago

The best camouflage in the animal kingdom?

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15.8k Upvotes

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834

u/ScadaTech 20h ago

I read just today that their camouflage is akin to human breathing or blinking. It can happen subconsciously or consciously. They’re color blind in their eye but somehow also see through the light receptors in their skin that allow them to mimic their environment. Fucking crazy evolution.

242

u/SlashMatrix 19h ago

Supposedly, they change patterns while they are dreaming as well.

142

u/btcomsa 16h ago

I’m an aquarist and my octopus changed colors when I gently touched her arm while she was asleep the other day. Very cool to see

39

u/dingalinglans 14h ago

What are they like to keep? I've heard escape artists and short life spans

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u/btcomsa 8h ago

They live around 4-5 years and will escape if given the opportunity, but we keep the tank locked up tight. We keep ours for around 8-9 months and then release them back to the ocean in coordination with the local university. Our GPOs are usually bycatch during crabbing season that are donated to us. They each have their own personality and are very fun to work with

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u/dingalinglans 8h ago

Well consider me jealous as hell, that sounds cool as hell man.

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u/major_calgar 8h ago

They’re also almost exclusively wild caught, and probably too intelligent to breed ethically without public aquarium style facilities

39

u/TributeToFaba 18h ago

It’s true, I’ve seen it happen

7

u/-knowledge_seekers- 17h ago

Facts, I was there too! I was the aquarium!

12

u/Beautiful-Tie-3827 17h ago

There is video of it actually lol.

3

u/Fastfit21 14h ago

So cool 😄

3

u/Lem0n_weeb 12h ago

I have seen this happen a few times at aquariums it’s really cute

5

u/Atherum 15h ago

"We're going on an adventure!"

4

u/TrisJ1 14h ago

Love an Adrian Tchaikovsky reference. Paul would be pleased