Joe Kahlo
It’s no secret that the ocean is full of plastic waste leaving the sea creatures to deal with the consequences.
A video recently captured shows scuba divers attempting to convince a baby octopus to switch ‘homes’ from a plastic cup to a couple of seashells.
Taken by Pall Sigurdsson, he and a few divers spent hours making sure their new friend found a suitable shell he can call home.
This little guy was a coconut (veined) octopus and they are known to instinctually protect themselves with shells and other natural objects found in the sea.
If there are no useful natural materials, they go for whatever they can find on the ocean bed such as clear plastic cups/containers.
This means the octopus is vulnerable due to being visible through the clear plastic, and also means the predator that eats the octopus will eat the plastic.
“We spent a whole dive and most of our air saving this octopus from what was bound to be a cruel fate,” says Sigurdsson.
“While a shell is a sturdy protection, a passing eel or flounder would probably swallow the cup with the octopus in it, most likely also killing the predator or weakening it to a point where it will be soon eaten by an even bigger fish.”
Speaking to Bored Panda, he goes on to say, “This was our third dive that day, and we were all starting to get a little bit tired. My dive buddy sent me a hand signal indicating that he had found an octopus and asked me to come over for help.”
“I am no stranger to seeing octopi making homes out of trash. They are clever animals and use their environment to their advantage, and trash is a permanent part of their environment now.
“However the octopus with its soft tentacles did not know that this cup offers virtually no protection, and in a competitive environment like the ocean, this cup was a guaranteed death sentence.”
“There are good days, and there are bad days depending on ocean currents. Some days, you see so much trash that it is almost impossible to film sea creatures without also including trash.”
“I try as hard as I can to make people see the ocean when it looks its best. Once I saw a family of anemone fish living next to a corroded battery. That was heartbreaking,” sighed Sigurdsson.
All credit goes to Pall Sigurdsson
