Cephalopods

ocean · smart creatures · mollusks · arms and tentacles

Eight-armed explorers. Octopuses have eight arms covered in suckers that help them grab things, taste the water, and move around the ocean floor with incredible skill and flexibility.

Squirt ink defense. When cephalopods feel threatened, they release a cloud of dark ink to confuse predators and escape, which is why fishers sometimes call them "inkfish."

Brainy ocean animals. Cephalopods are some of the smartest creatures in the sea and can solve puzzles, use tools, and change color instantly to hide or communicate.

Tentacled hunters. Squids use long tentacles to dart through the water and snatch fish, while cuttlefish stay closer to the ocean floor hunting for crabs and small creatures.

Ancient living fossil. The nautilus is a rare cephalopod with a spiral shell and many more tentacles than octopuses or squids, and it has stayed mostly unchanged for millions of years.