April 23, 2010

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Drive-Through or Eat Out? How An Octopus Decides

It’s amazing how much you can learn about an animal’s mind by a simply watching it. Video 1: Gratuitous video of octopuses never hurt anyone.

By Jason G. Goldman

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This article was published in Scientific American’s former blog network and reflects the views of the author, not necessarily those of Scientific American

It's amazing how much you can learn about an animal's mind by a simply watching it.

Video 1: Gratuitous video of octopuses never hurt anyone. Maybe this will sate the Pharyngulites.

In the late 1980s, a researcher named Jennifer A. Mather wondered about octopuses' use of spatial memory. This researcher and some volunteers did some skin-diving near Bermuda and observed octopuses going out in search of food. They noticed that sometimes after catching a tasty bit of chow, the octopuses ate out, but sometimes they'd take their snack to go and eat at home. And not only that, but it turned out that there was a correlation between the decision to eat out and the distance from home. When they were farther away from home, they tended to eat out; when they were closer, then took the catch home.

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So what? This finding suggests that octopuses have at least a crude mental map of the space surrounding their homes: that they know their location in the environment relative to home, and they use that information to make a decision about where to dine.

What else did she find out about octopus navigation? You'll have to check back next week!

Mather, J. (1991). Navigation by spatial memory and use of visual landmarks in octopuses Journal of Comparative Physiology A, 168 (4), 491-497. DOI: 10.1007/BF00199609

Jason G. Goldman is a science journalist based in Los Angeles. He has written about animal behavior, wildlife biology, conservation, and ecology for Scientific American, Los Angeles magazine, the Washington Post, the Guardian, the BBC, Conservation magazine, and elsewhere. He contributes to Scientific American's "60-Second Science" podcast, and is co-editor of Science Blogging: The Essential Guide (Yale University Press). He enjoys sharing his wildlife knowledge on television and on the radio, and often speaks to the public about wildlife and science communication.

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