![]() Unlike females, "males have a modified third right arm called a hectocotylus, which has a sperm groove down it and a specialized tip," Mather said. To avoid getting eaten, they'll often mate from a distance or after mounting the back of a female's mantle - positions that give them extra time to escape should their (usually larger) mate turn violent. Mating for males is a dangerous game due to the female's penchant for cannibalism. Some "sneaker" males use these telltale signals to their advantage by matching their body color to the female's - this allows them to creep past a guarding male and mate with the female secretively. aculeatus keep a black- and white-stripe pattern on their bodies while in the presence of a female and during aggressive encounters, and females remain camouflaged. If another male comes by, he pushes and grapples with his competition, a fight that may end in a fatality. In this species, a male will guard a female from other males, typically while staying in a den in tentacle's reach of the female's den. Cyanea), on the other hand, will stand tall and tower over his potential mate, while turning pale - as he approaches a female, he'll flash a distinctive pattern of black stripes across his body.Ībdopus aculeatushas one of the most complex sexual behaviors among octopuses. They will also spread themselves out to appear large, and turn a dark or pale coloration.Ī male day octopus ( O. Male common octopuses ( Octopus Vulgaris), for instance, are known to rear up and display several large suckers on the underside of their tentacles to identify themselves as male, but only if approaching a larger female, which may decide to attack and eat them. However, that's not to say the clever cephalopods have no courtship rituals to entice potential mates. "Females don't usually refuse males," Mather said. Males appear to devote a lot time searching for mates, while females typically become less active in adulthood and possibly draw males to them using chemical cues.īecause they're solitary animals, octopuses aren't exactly picky with their mates. It's unclear how mature male and female octopuses find each other in the vast ocean.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |