HABITS OF THE CEPHALOPODA. f3 



VIII. Habits of Octopus vulgaris Into one of my cages I 

 had put a living Pinna nobilis adhering to a fragment of rock ; 

 this cage also contained an Octopux vulgaris, and some living 

 testaceous mollusca which I had placed there for the purpose of 

 my investigations. One day, whilst observing my animals, I 

 saw that the Poulpe was holding a fragment of rock in one of 

 its arms, and watching the Pinna, which was opening its valves ; 

 as soon as they were perfectly open, the Poulpe, with incredible 

 address and promptitude, placed the stone between the valves, 

 preventing the Pinna from closing them again, when the Octopus 

 set about devouring the mollusk. 



The next day I was observing the Poulpe again, when I saw 

 him crush some Tellina?, then search about amongst other shells, 

 and finally stretch himself close to a Triton nodiferum. I had 

 the perseverance to remain on the watch for four hours. The 

 Triton extruded half the body from its shell, no doubt with the 

 purpose of going to seek its food, when the Poulpe sprang upon 

 it, and surrounded it with his arms ; the mollusk retired precipi- 

 tately into its shell, and in closing this with its operculum, 

 pinched the point of one of the arms of the Poulpe, which, by 

 struggling, at last left the tip of his arm in the shell of the Tri- 

 ton. It would require whole pages to describe all the stratagems 

 employed by the Poulpe for the capture of his prey. I should 

 have to tell things which would appear incredible ; and his 

 voracity is such, that notwithstanding the abundance of nourish- 

 ment with which I furnished him, I was compelled to remove him 

 from the cage, or he would have devoured all my mollusca. So 

 great is its .voracity, that it even attacks man, tears away his 

 flesh, and eats it. MADAME J. POWER.* 



It may be remarked upon the above account, that the partic- 

 ular Poulpe observed by Mad. Power, completely falsified the 

 axiom that " nature works by the simplest means," by using an 

 intelligent method of overcoming the resistance of the Pinna, 

 w^hen the latter's fragile laminated shell lay at the mercy of the 

 powerful jaws with which he is endowed. The muscular power 

 of the arms of the Poulpe is probably quite sufficient, moreover 

 to crush the shell of the Pinna, if the two animals are equally 



*Ann. Mag. N. Hist., 2d ser., xx, 336, 1857. 

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