to each other), jellyfish (by inflating its mantle and trailing its arms behind it), and zebra sole (holding all 8 arms behind it as it uses its siphon to swim). The octopus' mimicry of flatfish may be its preferred guise; in a period of 5 days nearly 500 instances of flatfish mimicry were seen. Not only does the mimic octopus use its ability to defend from predators, it also uses aggressive mimicry to approach wary prey, for example mimicking a crab as an apparent mate, only to devour its deceived suitor. The mimic octopus retains the ability to camouflage with its sandy environment. It was also observed to mimic sessile animals such as small sponges, tube-worm tubes, or colonial tunicates. The octopus may be able to intelligently use its mimicry based on the situation. For example, an octopus which was being harassed by damselfish mimicked a banded sea snake, a damselfish predator. It decides which mimicry behavior would be most appropriate and acts upon it. Feeding The mimic octopus can either be classified as a hunter or a forager. It is believed to be a hunter because scientists have observed and recorded the octopus having the ability to stalk prey and hunt down small fish and catch them. More often, however, the mimic octopus can be seen foraging for food. It does this by using a jet of water through its siphon to glide over the sand while searching for prey, and using its slender tentacles to reach into crevices in coral, as well as holes in the sand, and use its suction cups to grab small crustaceans and eat them. Because the mimic octopus prefers to live in shallow, murky waters, it is believed that its diet consists almost exclusively of small fish and crustaceans. That is because those are the only two animals that are common to those conditions that a mimic octopus can survive on. They are believed to be carnivores, and are not known to eat any type of plant or vegetation. References Bibliography [children's book] External links Octopodidae Molluscs described in 2005