---
title: "What the sources say about the Mimic Octopus | AnimalTracks.wiki"
description: "49 claims from the Mimic Octopus profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it."
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# What the sources say about the Mimic Octopus (*Thaumoctopus mimicus*)

> 49 claims from the Mimic Octopus profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it. A "..." marks a cut in a quote and [brackets] an insertion.

Profile: [Mimic Octopus](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/mimic-octopus/)

## Norman, Finn & Tregenza (2001). Dynamic mimicry in an Indo–Malayan octopus. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B: Biological Sciences.

https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2001.1708

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| The octopus that acts out toxic animals, and seems to pick the impression to suit the threat. | clearly impersonations of venomous animals co-occurring in this habitat ... the octopus makes decisions about the most appropriate form of mimicry to use (note: tagline) |
| Silt and sand seafloor off river mouths, 2 to 12 metres deep, first found in Indonesia | It is found on silt and sand substrates o¡ river mouths in water between 2 m and 12 m deep. (note: stats.habitat) |
| Mostly crustaceans and fishes that live in burrows | their prey are mainly subterranean crustaceans (note: stats.diet; fishes in next claim) |
| forages in daylight on open sand, in full view of predatory fish | emerges during daylight hours to forage on sand substrates in full view of pelagic |
| Its arm span reaches up to 60 centimetres | has an arm span of up to 60 cm |
| It was discovered in 1998 off Sulawesi, Indonesia | was discovered in 1998 o¡ the coast of Sulawesi, Indonesia |
| It lives on silt and sand off river mouths, in water 2 to 12 metres deep | It is found on silt and sand substrates o¡ river mouths in water between 2 m and 12 m deep. |
| the team that first studied its mimicry filmed it at Sulawesi and Bali | During research dives in Indonesia (Sulawesi and Bali), we |
| A body with no rigid skeleton has fewer limits on the shapes it can take. | The absence of a rigid internal or external skeleton reduces physical restrictions to adopting di¡erent shapes |
| The first study was confident of only three impressions, and each copies a toxic animal. | we are only con¢dent in our interpretation of the mimicry of soles, lion-¢shes and banded sea-snakes ... most obvious impersonations by the mimic octopus are all of animals that produce strong toxins |
| it pulls all its arms into a leaf-shaped wedge and undulates through the water like a swimming flatfish | the octopus drew all its arms into a leaf-shaped wedge with a central mantle trailing the head ... undulating the body in the fashion of a swimming £at¢sh |
| The authors believe the model is a sole | We believe that this unique posture is mimicry of an abundant sole |
| soles have poison glands at the base of their fins | soles (including Zebrias species) possess poison glands at the bases of the dorsal and anal ¢ns |
| it swims just above the seafloor with its arms trailing, like a lionfish with its banded poisonous spines flared | swimming just above the sea-£oor with arms trailing from the body, taking on the appearance of a lion-¢sh ( Pterois spp., ¢gure 1 f ) swimming with its banded poisonous spines fully £ared |
| lionfish with its banded poisonous spines flared | the long bannered spines of lion-¢shes are tipped with toxins |
| it threads six arms down a hole and raises two, banded, curled and undulating | six arms were threaded down a hole and two were raised in opposite directions, banded, curled and undulated |
| Banded sea snakes inject venom through fangs | Banded sea-snakes produce venom that is injected through fangs |
| Each time the team saw the sea snake pose, it came in answer to an attack by territorial damselfish | on all occasions when sea-snake mimicry was observed it was exclusively a reaction to an attack by territorial damsel¢shes |
| Sea snakes hunt by entering burrows and are predators of damselfish | Sea-snakes forage by entering burrows, and are predators of damsel¢shes |
| The authors read this as a sign that the octopus chooses the form best suited to the threat. | our observations suggest that the octopus makes decisions about the most appropriate form of mimicry to use |
| While foraging, it typically crawls along in drab brown, probing holes with its arm tips and using flared webs to trap fleeing prey | typically crawled along the substrate in drab brown colours ( ¢gure 1 b ), using their arm tips to probe down holes and the £ared webs to trap £eeing prey |
| Its prey are mainly crustaceans and fish that live in burrows | their prey are mainly subterranean crustaceans and ¢shes |
| It can enter a tunnel completely and come out of another hole up to 1 metre away. | animals were observed to enter a tunnel completely and to emerge from another hole up to 1m from the entrance point |
| The authors knew of no other octopus that forages through tunnels. | We are unaware of any other octopuses that forage through subterranean tunnels. |
| The researchers who first filmed it were confident about three: a sole, a lionfish and a banded sea snake. | we are only con¢dent in our interpretation of the mimicry of soles, lion-¢shes and banded sea-snakes |
| They also saw poses that might copy a sand anemone and a jellyfish, but called human readings of such poses subjective. | It is possible that this posture impersonates large solitary sand anemones ... behaviour may impersonate large jelly¢shes ... Human interpretations of potential mimicries are subjective |
| On four occasions, small territorial damselfish attacked and the octopus answered with its sea snake pose | On four occasions, attacks by small territorial damsel¢shes ( Amphiprion spp.) elicited a posture where six arms were threaded down a hole |
| the researchers saw that pose at no other time | on all occasions when sea-snake mimicry was observed it was exclusively a reaction to an attack by territorial damsel¢shes |
| Sea snakes enter burrows to hunt and prey on damselfish | Sea-snakes forage by entering burrows, and are predators of damsel¢shes |
| so the researchers suggested the octopus picks the form that fits the threat. | Evidence for such sophisticated behaviour comes from our observation that on all occasions when sea-snake mimicry was observed it was exclusively a reaction to an attack by territorial damsel¢shes. Sea-snakes forage by entering burrows, and are predators of damsel¢shes (M. Norman, personal observation). The observation that the octopus uses a particular form of mimicry when it is most appropriate suggests |
| Camouflage is well documented in octopuses and their relatives. | Camou£age and mimicry are well documented in cephalopods |
| Three Costumes | we are only con¢dent in our interpretation of the mimicry of soles, lion-¢shes and banded sea-snakes (note: heading) |
| It looks that way. | our observations suggest that the octopus makes decisions about the most appropriate form of mimicry to use (note: hedged by 'looks') |
| The researchers who first filmed it were confident of three impressions, a sole, a lionfish and a banded sea snake | we are only con¢dent in our interpretation of the mimicry of soles, lion-¢shes and banded sea-snakes ... most obvious impersonations by the mimic octopus are all of animals that produce strong toxins (note: vibe.reason) |
| the octopus seems to pick the one that fits the threat | clearly impersonations of venomous animals co-occurring in this habitat ... the octopus makes decisions about the most appropriate form of mimicry to use (note: vibe.reason) |

## Hanlon, Conroy & Forsythe (2007). Mimicry and foraging behaviour of two tropical sand-flat octopus species off North Sulawesi, Indonesia. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society.

https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1095-8312.2007.00948.x

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| A later study of two species of so-called mimic octopus in Indonesia analysed nearly 500 episodes of flounder mimicry over 5 days. | The so-called 'mimic octopuses' of tropical Indonesia ... two species of octopus ... Mimicry of a local, abundant flounder occurred commonly during 5 days of natural foraging: nearly 500 episodes were analysed |
| The octopuses used it only when moving would give them away. | octopuses used flounder mimicry only when their movement would give away camouflage in this open habitat |
| When still, they looked like small sponges, tube-worm tubes or colonial tunicates | when motionless, octopuses assumed body patterns and postures that resembled small sponges, tube-worm tubes, or colonial tunicates |
| On open sand there is little to hide behind, and a moving octopus is easy to spot. | octopuses used flounder mimicry only when their movement would give away camouflage in this open habitat |
| In a later study of two so-called mimic octopus species, flounder mimicry appeared only when movement would have given the camouflage away. | The so-called 'mimic octopuses' ... two species of octopus ... octopuses used flounder mimicry only when their movement would give away camouflage in this open habitat |
| Before and after, the octopuses sat still or crawled slowly, camouflaged. | immediately before and after flounder mimicry, they were camouflaged and motionless (sitting or very slowly crawling) |

## The Talented Mimic Octopus. American Museum of Natural History.

https://www.amnh.org/explore/news-blogs/mimic-octopus-behavior

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Dynamic mimicry, switching between impressions of toxic animals depending on which predator is around | a talent called dynamic mimicry ... Depending on which predator is around, this cephalopod adjusts its posture by folding, splaying, or hiding its arms to copy the shape, texture, and motions of the banded sole, lionfish, or banded sea snake—three toxic animals (note: stats.superpower; see tagline claim) |
| about 2 feet | a 2-foot long species |
| It is the first animal of any kind known to shift between several imitations, a talent called dynamic mimicry. | It's the first animal of any kind known to shift between multiple imitations, a talent called dynamic mimicry. |
| In 2011, researchers found that the harlequin jawfish sticks close to it and blends in with the colour of its arms while swimming outside its burrow. | In 2011, researchers discovered that the mimic octopus has its own copycat—the harlequin jawfish (Stalix histrio), which sticks close to the octopus and blends in with the coloration of its arms to avoid detection while swimming outside of its burrow |
| Part of its defence is to look like something toxic. | parrot not just one but several toxic sea creatures |
| The octopus even has its own copycat. | the mimic octopus has its own copycat |

## Allcock (2019). Thaumoctopus mimicus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2019: e.T87585522A87585525.

https://doi.org/10.2305/iucn.uk.2019-2.rlts.t87585522a87585525.en

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Least Concern | IUCN Red List category: Least Concern (LC). (note: stats.conservationStatus) |
| The Red List rates the mimic octopus Least Concern. | IUCN Red List category: Least Concern (LC). |