---
title: "What the sources say about the Dumbo Octopus | AnimalTracks.wiki"
description: "51 claims from the Dumbo Octopus profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it."
image: "https://animaltracks.wiki/images/animals/dumbo-octopus-1.webp"
canonical: "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/dumbo-octopus/sources/"
---

# What the sources say about the Dumbo Octopus (*Grimpoteuthis*)

> 51 claims from the Dumbo Octopus profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it. A "..." marks a cut in a quote and [brackets] an insertion.

Profile: [Dumbo Octopus](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/dumbo-octopus/)

## Dumbo Octopus. Oceana, Marine Life Encyclopedia.

https://oceana.org/marine-life/dumbo-octopus/

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| among the deepest-living of all known octopuses | among the deepest-living of all known octopus species (note: final pass restored 'known', which the tagline had dropped) |
| from about 100 to 7,000 meters (328 to 22,965 feet) down | ranging from depths of 100 to 7,000 meters (328 to 22,965 feet) |
| The deep seafloor worldwide | They live in the deep sea around the world |
| It also swims with its ear-like fins, unusual for octopuses, which typically rely on jet propulsion. | an unusual means of travel for octopuses, which typically rely on jet propulsion to move |
| They are among the deepest-living of all known octopuses. | among the deepest-living of all known octopus species |
| The genus Grimpoteuthis ranges from about 100 to 7,000 meters (328 to 22,965 feet) down | ranging from depths of 100 to 7,000 meters (328 to 22,965 feet) |
| Octopuses typically rely on jet propulsion to move. | octopuses, which typically rely on jet propulsion to move (note: FAQ3's declared ref is aop-dumbo; the following claims (from aop-dumbo) back the rest of this FAQ's answer) |
| it may be vulnerable to sharks, fur seals, fish, and sperm whales | They may be vulnerable to a number of predators, including sharks, fur seals, fish, and sperm whales. |
| not one species but a whole genus of deep-sea octopuses | The name “dumbo octopus” does not refer to one species, but rather (note: the page's own count (18) conflicts with aop-dumbo's 'about 17' and boem-dumbo's '17 known species', so the page states no count at all) |
| Among all known octopuses, they are some of the deepest-living. | among the deepest-living of all known octopus species |
| Dumbo octopuses are rarely seen | hese octopuses are rarely seen |
| some species are known only from a single recorded observation | some dumbo octopus species are known only from a single recorded observation |
| instead of jetting, as octopuses typically do | an unusual means of travel for octopuses, which typically rely on jet propulsion to move (note: vibe.reason (task #506)) |

## Dumbo Octopus: The Whimsical Survivor of the Deep. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, U.S. Department of the Interior, 2024.

https://www.boem.gov/newsroom/ocean-science-news/dumbo-octopus-whimsical-survivor-deep

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| webbed umbrella arms | which are a kind of umbrella octopus, characterized by a web of skin in between their arms |
| No ink sac: it moves quickly to get away instead | The Dumbo octopus lacks an ink sac that other octopus use as a defense mechanism, so it uses its ability to change color and move quickly to avoid predators. (note: the source also credits colour change; that ability is contradicted by oceana-dumbo ('dumbo octopuses do not have an ink sac and cannot change'), so the page claims only the fast getaway) |
| Most dumbo octopuses average 20 to 30 centimeters (7.9 to 12 inches) in length. | Most Dumbo octopus average between 20-30 cm (7.9-12 inches) in length |
| The largest found was much bigger: 1.8 meters (about 6 feet) long and 5.9 kilograms (13 pounds). | the largest found was 1.8m (6 foot 32 inches) long and weighed 5.9 kg (13 lbs) (note: source's own imperial figure ('6 foot 32 inches') looks like a scraping artifact; '1.8 meters (about 6 feet)' is used instead of quoting it verbatim. 'The largest found' keeps the source's framing: this is the record individual, not a typical size) |
| flapping the pair of ear-like fins just above its eyes | a pair of ear-like fins that protrude just above its eyes ... the octopus flaps these fins to propel itself about the ocean floor |
| No, it has no ink sac, the defense other octopuses use. Instead, when something threatens it, a dumbo octopus moves quickly to get away, and there are few predators for Grimpoteuthis in the deep ocean anyway | The Dumbo octopus lacks an ink sac that other octopus use as a defense mechanism, so it uses its ability to change color and move quickly to avoid predators. Fortunately, there are few predators for Grimpoteuthis in the deep ocean. |
| named for a pair of ear-like fins that stick out just above their eyes and flap like the cartoon elephant's, propelling them around the ocean floor | The Dumbo octopus gets its name due to a pair of ear-like fins that protrude just above its eyes. Just like the cartoon elephant, the octopus flaps these fins to propel itself about the ocean floor. |
| across the world's oceans | in oceans all around the world |
| The largest found was far bigger: 1.8 meters (about 6 feet) and 5.9 kilograms (13 pounds). | the largest found was 1.8m (6 foot 32 inches) long and weighed 5.9 kg (13 lbs) (note: same source as FAQ2's version of this claim; imperial length rounded from the source's garbled '6 foot 32 inches') |
| A dumbo octopus has no proper beak, just an underdeveloped mouth opening | The mouth of Dumbo octopus is an underdeveloped or nonexistent beak. |
| instead of tearing food apart it pounces on isopods, amphipods, copepods, and bristle worms and swallows them whole | The mouth of Dumbo octopus is an underdeveloped or nonexistent beak. This allows them to pounce on prey and swallow them whole. (note: the sentence's 'so' is the source's own causal link ('This allows them to'); aop-dumbo states the same mechanism ('a degenerated radula-type opening that allows it to swallow prey whole instead of having to tear and grind it')) |
| It also has no ink sac, the defense other octopuses use. Instead, when something threatens it, a dumbo octopus moves quickly to get away, and there are few predators for it in the deep ocean anyway | The Dumbo octopus lacks an ink sac that other octopus use as a defense mechanism, so it uses its ability to change color and move quickly to avoid predators. Fortunately, there are few predators for Grimpoteuthis in the deep ocean. |
| Blue blood carries oxygen better down here. | Grimpoteuthis have blue blood because of their blood’s high copper content. Blood with high copper content is more efficient at transporting oxygen in the low-temperature, oxygen-depleted waters of the deep ocean. |
| A dumbo octopus's blood is blue because of a high copper content, and blood with a high copper content is more efficient at carrying oxygen through the cold, low-oxygen water of the deep sea. | Grimpoteuthis have blue blood because of their blood’s high copper content. Blood with high copper content is more efficient at transporting oxygen in the low-temperature, oxygen-depleted waters of the deep ocean. |
| Dumbo octopuses are solitary, so they have to make the most of any meeting with the opposite sex. | Dumbo octopus are solitary creatures, so they must make the most of any encounters they have with the opposite sex |
| whenever the chance arises | lay the eggs under small rocks or shells when the opportunity arises |
| swims by flapping its ear-like fins | a pair of ear-like fins that protrude just above its eyes ... the octopus flaps these fins to propel itself about the ocean floor (note: vibe.reason (task #506); replaces 'peaceful weightless drifting through deep midnight water', a place and a mood) |

## Dumbo Octopus. Aquarium of the Pacific, Online Learning Center.

https://www.aquariumofpacific.org/onlinelearningcenter/species/dumbo_octopus

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| some living as deep as 7,000 meters (23,000 feet) | with some living as deep as 7,000 m (23000 ft) below sea level |
| typically between 3,000 and 4,000 meters | at depths of depths of 3000 to 4000 m (9800 to 13000 ft) |
| Isopods, amphipods, copepods, and bristle worms, pounced on and swallowed whole | Dumbo octopuses pounce on prey and eat it whole. Their diet includes copepods, isopods, bristle worms, and amphipods. |
| typically staying in a narrower band between 3,000 and 4,000 meters | at depths of depths of 3000 to 4000 m (9800 to 13000 ft) |
| to move with grace and ease | Flapping their Dumbo ear-like fins gets them moving with peculiar grace and ease. |
| For a sudden thrust, useful for escaping a predator, it expands and contracts the webbing between its arms or shoots water through its funnel. | Expanding and contracting the webbing between their tentacles or by shooting water through their funnel cause a sudden thrust, useful for escaping a predator. (note: final pass: the source gives the web pulse and the funnel jet as the sudden thrust, and the fins as the graceful movement; 'slow' was in no source) |
| They live on the bottom, or hovering just above it | live on the bottom, or hovering just slightly above the seafloor |
| A dumbo octopus flies instead, flapping those big fins to move with grace and ease. | Flapping their Dumbo ear-like fins gets them moving with peculiar grace and ease. |
| it pounces on isopods, amphipods, copepods, and bristle worms and swallows them whole | Dumbo octopuses pounce on prey and eat it whole. Their diet includes copepods, isopods, bristle worms, and amphipods. |
| Much of that food drifts by in ocean currents or collects around deep-sea vents. | Much of the food they consume is also found around ocean vent ecosystems or floating along in the current. |
| Dissected females have shown eggs in various stages of maturation, meaning there is no breeding season | Females necropsied have shown eggs in various stages of maturation which means that there is no breeding season (note: 'necropsied' (examined post-mortem) simplified to 'dissected' for the audience) |
| a female can lay eggs continuously under rocks or shells | females can lay eggs continuously under small rocks or on shells in the deep ocean |
| A male delivers a sperm packet with a special bump on one arm, and it is thought the female can use the sperm to fertilize eggs at almost any time. | Males have a separate protuberance on one of their arms that transports an encapsulated sperm packet into the female’s mantle. It is thought the female can utilize sperm for fertilization at almost any time. |

## Ziegler & Sagorny (2021). Holistic description of new deep sea megafauna (Cephalopoda: Cirrata) using a minimally invasive approach. BMC Biology.

https://doi.org/10.1186/s12915-021-01000-9

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| a study described a new species, Grimpoteuthis imperator, from a dead specimen collected in the North Pacific with a chain bag dredge | The single cirrate specimen was collected in the North Pacific Ocean during scientific cruise SO-249 BERING (R/V SONNE) using a chain bag dredge (note: '2021' in the sentence is the paper's own publication year, carried by the reference; 'The animal arrived dead on deck' (next sentence) backs 'a dead specimen') |
| a dead specimen | The animal arrived dead on deck |
| at a site in the Emperor Seamounts 3,913 to 4,417 meters deep | Emperor Seamounts, North Pacific Ocean; 48° 27.53′ N, 168° 52.21′ E, 3913–4417 m depth (note: quote is part of the paper's Type locality sentence; the source uses a thin space (U+2009) between the number and unit) |
| the researchers combined MRI and CT scans with DNA barcoding | high-field magnetic resonance imaging, micro-computed tomography, and DNA barcoding were combined |
| a minimally invasive approach chosen to avoid potentially harmful effects on the unique specimen | Potentially harmful effects on this unique deep-sea cephalopod specimen were avoided by scanning the fixed animal without admixture of a contrast agent (note: 'minimally invasive' is the paper's own description of its method (title and abstract); the scope is the single G. imperator holotype, not the genus) |

## Shea et al. (2018). Dumbo octopod hatchling provides insight into early cirrate life cycle. Current Biology.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2018.01.032

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| the first living hatchling to be filmed already had everything it needed to swim by flapping its fins and to capture prey | Here, we provide the first video of a living hatchling ... The specimen's behavior and advanced state of organ development show that cirrate hatchlings possess all morphological features required for movement via fin-swimming, for visually and chemically sensing their environment, and for prey capture |
| Dumbo octopuses hatch as competent juveniles, able to fend for themselves straight away. | These data provide evidence that dumbo octopods hatch as competent juveniles. (note: the source's 'dumbo octopods' is written as 'dumbo octopuses' for the audience; 'able to fend for themselves straight away' explains 'competent juveniles' and adds no fact the quote does not carry) |

## Jamieson & Vecchione (2020). First in situ observation of Cephalopoda at hadal depths (Octopoda: Opisthoteuthidae: Grimpoteuthis sp.). Marine Biology.

https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-020-03701-1

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| A 2020 study reported a Grimpoteuthis filmed by a video lander at 6,957 meters in the Indian Ocean, extending the known maximum depth range for cephalopods by 1,812 meters. | The demersal cirrate octopod Grimpoteuthis sp. was observed at both 5760 and 6957 m in the Indian Ocean. These observations extend the known maximum depth range for cephalopods by 1812 m (note: hand check: Springer refuses the full text, so the quote is the Crossref/Europe PMC abstract read via `audit:sources --abstract` and verify:quotes cannot confirm it automatically. Confirmed word for word on 2026-09-17, including 'by HD video lander' earlier in the abstract. '2020' is the paper's own publication year. The extension is to the depth range for cephalopods, not for octopuses or for this genus.) |