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Octopuses Use Step-by-Step Technique to Squeeze Through Tiny Holes
Confirmed
In Short: Scientists have decoded the exact steps common octopuses use to escape through small openings, according to a study published in the Journal of Experimental Biology.
Octopuses on a line.
Octopuses can change their body shape to squeeze through tiny holes, almost like water flowing through a gap, said Wenci Xin from the National University of Singapore.
In a study published Nov. 5, researchers used cameras and clear aquarium boxes to observe octopuses as they approached small holes.
The study found that octopuses follow a repeatable routine: three steps for a roomier hole and four for a tighter one.
The main experiments involved three subadult common octopuses and four Mayan octopuses.
Xin is now trying to build a robot that mimics the behavior of the octopuses, which is no easy feat.
Even undulating, snake-like robots have their shortcomings.
Octopuses are bizarre but exceptionally skillful creatures, able to change color, manipulate tools, and recognize human faces.
What this adds
This report adds details on the specific steps octopuses take to squeeze through tiny openings, as well as the researchers' efforts to build a robot that mimics this behavior.
Background
Scientists have decoded the exact steps common octopuses use to squeeze through small openings, a technique they use to escape predators.
What's confirmed
- Octopuses can change their body shape to squeeze through tiny holes, almost like water flowing through a gap, said Wenci Xin from the National University of Singapore.
- In a study published Nov. 5, researchers used cameras and clear aquarium boxes to observe octopuses as they approached small holes.
- The study found that octopuses follow a repeatable routine: three steps for a roomier hole and four for a tighter one.
- The main experiments involved three subadult common octopuses and four Mayan octopuses.
- Xin is now trying to build a robot that mimics the behavior of the octopuses, which is no easy feat.
- Even undulating, snake-like robots have their shortcomings.
- Octopuses are bizarre but exceptionally skillful creatures, able to change color, manipulate tools, and recognize human faces.
What's still developing
- Previously, engineers have designed soft-bodied robots inspired by octopuses, which are able to walk on water and grasp objects, according to studies in Bioinspiration & Biomimetics and Science Robotics, respectively.
- This is because it offers a good gauge of the size of the cartilage sheath protecting the animal’s central nervous system and, therefore, the researchers reasoned, could help identify the smallest hole the octopus can squeeze through.
- Their findings, published in a study today in the Journal of Experimental Biology, show that there may not necessarily be a “one size fits all” approach for octopuses.
- A study published November 5 in the Journal of Experimental Biology describes the step-by-step processes some octopuses use to cram themselves into tight spaces.
- An octopus grips a rocky opening as it pulls its flexible body through in this AI-generated illustration, inspired by research into the coordinated movements behind octopus escapes. (CREDIT: The Brighter Side of News) An octopus squeezing through a tiny hole can look as though it is pouring itself through the opening.
- Octopuses have long astonished scientists with their ability to maneuver miniscule openings — and now, scientists are starting to study their skill.
- Under the circus tent of the ocean, octopuses play the role of contortionists and escape artists, packing themselves itself into spaces too tiny to believe.
- New openings will be posted weekly through December.
- The company alleges the shoes feature similarities including the arrangement of holes, trapezoid-shaped openings and a textured band.
- This groundwater fills tiny pore spaces within sediments that occupy the basin west of the Wasatch Mountains and lies beneath a salty layer roughly 30 feet thick.
Sources
- Discover Magazinelink
- NPRlink
- Nature World Newslink
- Popular Sciencelink
- Science Newslink
- ScienceAlertlink
- Smithsonian Magazinelink
- The Brighter Side of Newslink
- The Washington Postlink
- Moneylink
- Businessobserverfllink
- USA Todaylink
- The Hollywood Reporterlink
- Ewtnnewslink
- Scitechdailylink
- WarpBeat — background on Octopuses Can Squeeze Their Bodies Through Tiny Holes, And Scientists Are in Awe link