I've been looking stuff up on Octopi.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Octopus#N ... and_senses
Intelligence
Main article:
Cephalopod intelligence
[img=170x198]https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a4/Oktopus_opening_a_container_with_screw_cap_02_%28cropped%29.jpg/170px-Oktopus_opening_a_container_with_screw_cap_02_%28cropped%29.jpg[/img]
Octopus opening a container by unscrewing its cap
Octopuses are highly
intelligent.[sup]
[96][/sup]
Maze and
problem-solving experiments have shown evidence of a memory system that can store both
short- and
long-term memory. Young octopuses learn nothing from their parents, as adults provide no
parental care beyond tending to their eggs until the young octopuses hatch.[sup]
[67][/sup][sup]: 75 [/sup]
In laboratory experiments, octopuses can readily be trained to distinguish between different shapes and patterns. They have been reported to practise
observational learning,[sup]
[97][/sup] although the validity of these findings is contested.[sup]
[96][/sup] Octopuses have also been observed in what has been described as
play: repeatedly releasing bottles or toys into a circular current in their aquariums and then catching them.[sup]
[98][/sup] Octopuses often break out of their aquariums and sometimes into others in search of food.[sup]
[93][/sup][sup]
[99][/sup][sup]
[100][/sup] The
veined octopus collects discarded
coconut shells, then uses them to build a shelter, an example of
tool use.[sup]
[95][/sup]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cephalopod_intelligence
Protective legislation
[img=220x154]https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/76/Octopus.jpg/220px-Octopus.jpg[/img]
An octopus in a zoo.
Due to their intelligence, cephalopods are commonly protected by
animal testing regulations that do not usually apply to invertebrates.
In the UK from 1993 to 2012, the common octopus (
Octopus vulgaris) was the only invertebrate protected under the
Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986.[sup]
[46][/sup]
Cephalopods are the only invertebrates protected under the 2010
European Union directive
"on the protection of animals used for scientific purposes".[sup]
[47][/sup]
In 2019, some scholars have argued for increased protections for cephalopods in the United States as well.[sup]
[48][/sup]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animal_cognition
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animal_consciousness
Tool use
[img=220x165]https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/47/Octopus_shell.jpg/220px-Octopus_shell.jpg[/img]
A small
coconut octopus (4–5 cm in diameter) using a nut shell and clam shell as shelter.
The
octopus has repeatedly been shown to exhibit flexibility in the
use of tools.
At least four individuals of the
veined octopus (
Amphioctopus marginatus) have been observed retrieving discarded
coconut shells, manipulating them, transporting them some distance, and then reassembling them for use as shelter.[sup]
[34][/sup] It is surmised that the octopuses used bivalves for the same purpose before humans made coconut shells widely available on the sea floor.[sup]
[35][/sup][sup]
[36][/sup] Other sea creatures construct homes in a similar manner; most
hermit crabs use the discarded shells of other species for habitation, and some crabs place sea anemones on their carapaces to serve as camouflage. However, this behavior lacks the complexity of the octopus's fortress behavior, which involves picking up and carrying a tool for later use. (This argument remains contested by a number of biologists, who claim that the shells actually provide protection from bottom-dwelling predators in transport.[sup]
[37][/sup]) Octopuses have also been known to deliberately place stones, shells, and even bits of broken bottles to form walls that constrict their den openings.[sup]
[38][/sup]
In laboratory studies,
Octopus mercatoris, a small pygmy species of octopus, has been observed to block its lair using plastic
Lego bricks.[sup]
[39][/sup]
Smaller individuals of the
common blanket octopus (
Tremoctopus violaceus) hold the tentacles of the
Portuguese man o' war (whose venom they are immune to), both as means of protection and as a method of capturing prey.[sup]
[40][/sup]
Problem-solving ability
The highly sensitive suction cups and prehensile arms of octopuses, squid, and cuttlefish allow them to hold and manipulate objects. However, unlike vertebrates, the motor skills of octopuses do not seem to depend upon mapping their body within their brains, as the ability to organize complex movements is not thought to be linked to particular arms.[sup]
[41][/sup]
Cephalopods can solve complex puzzles requiring pushing or pulling actions, and can also unscrew the lids of containers and open the latches on acrylic boxes in order to obtain the food inside. They can also remember solutions to puzzles and learn to solve the same puzzle presented in different configurations.[sup]
[42][/sup]
- Octopus opening a container with a screw cap
Captive octopuses require stimulation or they will become lethargic; this typically takes the form of a variety of toys and puzzles.[sup]
[43][/sup] At an aquarium in
Coburg, Germany, an octopus named Otto was known to juggle his fellow tank-mates around, as well as throw rocks to smash the aquarium glass. On more than one occasion, Otto even caused
short circuits by crawling out of his tank and shooting a jet of water at the overhead lamp.[sup]
[44][/sup]
Additionally, cephalopods have been shown to have the capacity for future planning and reward processing after being tested with the
Stanford marshmallow experiment.[sup]
[45][/sup]