Discover

Today
Animals
Explore
Archive
Search

Use it

Classroom
Resources
Field lab
Quiz
Saved

Trust

Methodology
Sources
Corrections
Accessibility
Contributors

Details

About
Contact
Privacy
Terms
Newsletter

Animal profile

Common Octopus

Octopus vulgaris

CephalopodaRocky and seagrass-bottomed coastal shallows of temperate and tropical seasLeast Concern

Field profile

The common octopus is the most studied octopus in laboratories and the mainstay of Mediterranean octopus fisheries. It is a short-lived, solitary predator of crabs and molluscs, with a large brain relative to its body and a well-documented capacity for learning.

Scope note

This is an editorial profile, not a diagnostic field-identification guide or a substitute for current conservation assessments. Follow the cited sources on each fact for the evidence trail.

Published field notes

2025-03-30

Common Octopus

Most of an octopus's neurons sit outside its brain

The common octopus has roughly half a billion neurons, but only about a third of them are in the central brain. The majority lie in the arms, where nerve cords let each limb process touch and taste locally.

Read with evidence →

Common Octopus | Daily Animal Facts