In Perspective, Planet: Coconut as a tool!

Amazing to see an octopus intelligently use a coconut shell as a protective shelter! Watch it grab the shell and run off!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8408233.stm

Asher

Indeed! The crow videos that follow are also interesting.

Winston Mitchell said:

Indeed! The crow videos that follow are also interesting.

Click to expand...

Winston,

These videos are a window to the fact that there's so much wisdom in nature. Its quite amazing how we have been brought up to think of just man making tools. When it was reported repeatedly how apes use sticks as tools, that was considered as an exception. Here in that video, the invertebrate octopus is able to figure out how to make use of abandoned coconut shells. Now perhaps this is not rational thought, but hard wire to take advantage of abandoned shells to protect itself from predators. Still it's impressive!

... and funny!


Ashert

The eight-legged walk while draped over the shell is a real scream ;-)

One man's junk is another octopus's treasure.. go figure!

These guys are pretty bright- they've figured out how to unscrew the lid off a jar and are accomplished escape artists. I've got a dive/photography trip planned for Indonesia in April and I understand the area I'll be visiting has many different varieties of octopi.

Wendy

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Asher i saw this on TV....Pretty fascinating...Wendy i still cant get a lid off a jar....

The Aussie Octopus got twenty column-inches in our local paper this morning.