152 The Under-Water World 



abode. An octopus will wrestle for hours 

 with a large oyster, until it succeeds in 

 forcing the valves apart. It is such an 

 intriguing animal that imagination may 

 very easily give it more than its due as 

 regards intelligence. A Channel Island 

 naturalist was accustomed to keep octo- 

 pods in wire " chicken runs " sunk in 

 deep rock gullies, and these runs were so 

 arranged that small crabs could enter 

 but the octopus could not escape. It 

 was found that the " devil-fish " re- 

 mained hidden in a rock crevice until a 

 crab came within range, when he simply 

 unrolled an arm and gently flicked the 

 unsuspecting crustacean with the tip 

 between the eyes. The crabs appeared 

 to become hypnotised by this treatment, 

 and allowed themselves to be drawn into 

 the ogre's lair. It is alleged that the 

 animal will sometimes kill a small fish 

 and so dispose of it as a bait for crabs. 

 To ensure a feast the octopus will wait 



