While increasing sea temperatures might not prove very agreeable for most aquatic organisms, Australia’s gloomy octopuses have found the warm oceans to perfect to expand their territories. Gloomy octopus, scientifically known as Octopus tetricus is called “gloomy” because of its seemingly drooping white eyes. The octopuses often called the common Sydney octopus, are residents of New South Wales on the east coast of Australia but have now decided to live in the warmer waters of Tasmania. The new research outlining the expansion of these warm-water loving cephalopods was published recently in the journal Scientific Reports. The octopuses are not very large in size, about 80 centimeters wide and can have a tentacle as long as 6 feet. Previous researches done on these organisms reported that it was in the year 2000 that the octopuses were discovered on the southern coast of the Australian state of Victoria- before that they preferred to stick to the rocky shores of eastern Australia.
Scientists decided to calculate the extent of the territorial expansion after they were informed of the cephalopod sightings by the local fishermen and divers. The research was also touted as a “citizen science project” and was the brainchild of Gretta Pecl, marine ecologist at the University of Tasmania and also the study’s co-author. “People send in photo observations. We get an early indication of what species might be shifting, and then we initiate a more targeted research study,” said Pecl reportedly. The research predicted that the species will probably adapt perfectly to its new habitat and may expand it even more- all because of the continuous gene flow from the octopuses historical population.
There’s one catch to this news of the gloomy octopuses, they love to feed on shellfish like abalone and rock lobsters- which is a source of constant worry for the fishermen because both are quite popular at the local fisheries an bring good money to the fishermen. The shellfish species are struggling for survival as they fight the marine heat waves caused by the warm currents of the oceans and scientists report that they might not be able to survive the presence of another predator. What could be a solution is that a gloomy octopus fishery can be set-up, and since the comparatively large size of the gloomy octopuses from the already existing octopuses is quite attractive, it would bring money to the fishermen and also keep the shellfish from extinction.