| Giant octopus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| E. dofleini showing longitudinal folds and paddle-like papillae diagnostic for the genus. | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Cephalopoda |
| Order: | Octopoda |
| Family: | Enteroctopodidae |
| Genus: | Enteroctopus Rochebrune & Mabille, 1889 |
| Type species | |
| Octopus megalocyathus Gould, 1852 | |
| Species | |
| |
Enteroctopus is an octopus genus whose members are sometimes known as giant octopuses.
The generic name Enteroctopus was created by Alphonse Tremeau de Rochebrune and Jules François Mabille in 1887 and published in 1889, [1] joining Ancient Greek ἔντερον 'gut' and ὀκτώπους, thus 'octopus [with arms similar to] guts.' [2]
Enteroctopus is a genus of generally temperate octopuses. Members of this genus are characterized by their large size and are often known as giant octopuses. Enteroctopus species have distinct longitudinal wrinkles or folds dorsally and laterally on their bodies. Their heads are distinctly narrower than the mantle width. The hectocotylus of the males in this genus, found on the third right arm, is long and narrow in comparison with other genera in the family Octopodidae, often comprising one-fifth the length of the arm. Octopuses in this genus have large, paddle-like papillae instead of the more conical papillae in other octopus genera. [3] [4]
Genus Enteroctopus at present consists of four species, tabulated below: [5]
| Image | Scientific name | Common name | Distribution |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Enteroctopus dofleini | giant Pacific octopus | coastal North Pacific, along California, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, Alaska, Russia, Japan, and the Korean Peninsula |
| Enteroctopus magnificus | southern giant octopus | waters off Namibia and South Africa. | |
 | Enteroctopus megalocyathus | southern red octopus | southeastern coast of South America along the coasts of Argentina and Chile up to the Chiloé Archipelago, and the Falkland Islands. |
 | Enteroctopus zealandicus | yellow octopus | waters surrounding New Zealand. |
E. membranaceus has often been regarded as type species of the genus, not because it was designated as such by Rochebrune and Mabille when they erected the genus, but because it was the first named species in the genus. Robson in his 1929 monograph of octopods regarded E. membranaceus as a species dubium because the original description was insufficient to identify an individual species, the holotype was an immature specimen, and the type specimen no longer existed.
As such, the genus was considered invalid until Hochberg resurrected it in 1998. Hochberg noted that Robson had considered E. membranaceus a junior synonym of E. megalocyathus , the second species assigned to the genus by Rochebrune and Mabille in their 1889 description. Additionally, since Rochebrune and Mabille did not actually assign type status to E. membranaceus, Hochberg concluded that Enteroctopus was indeed a valid genus and transferred type-species status to E. megalocyathus based on his conclusion that E. megalocyathus and E. membranaceus are the same species. [3]
Species in the genus Enteroctopus are restricted to the temperate areas of the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. E. dofleini is the only member of the genus found in the Northern Hemisphere, and also the most widely distributed: It is found from Southern California, along the North Pacific Rim to Japan, including the Okhotsk and Bering Seas. [3] The other three species are found in the Southern Hemisphere; E. megalocyathus occurs on the southeastern coast of South America, [6] E. magnificus on the southwestern coast of Africa from Namibia to Port Elizabeth, South Africa, and E. zealandicus in temperate New Zealand. [4]
The member of this genus that best embodies the common name "giant octopus" is Enteroctopus dofleini , which holds the record of being the world's largest octopus based on direct measurements of a 71 kilograms (157 pounds) individual, weighed live. [7] [lower-alpha 1] This octopus had a total length near to 3.5 metres (11 feet). The remaining members of the genus are substantially smaller, with E. megalocyathus having an average mass of 4 kilograms (8.8 pounds) and reaching a total length of 1.0 metre (3.3 feet). [9] [10] E. magnificus reaches a total length of around 1.5 metres (5 feet). [4]
The giant squid is a species of deep-ocean dwelling squid in the family Architeuthidae. It can grow to a tremendous size, offering an example of abyssal gigantism: recent estimates put the maximum size at around 12–13 m (39–43 ft) for females and 10 m (33 ft) for males, from the posterior fins to the tip of the two long tentacles. The mantle of the giant squid is about 2 m long, and the length of the squid excluding its tentacles rarely exceeds 5 m (16 ft). Claims of specimens measuring 20 m (66 ft) or more have not been scientifically documented.
Ocythoe tuberculata, also known as the tuberculate pelagic octopus or football octopus, is a pelagic octopus. It is the only known species in the family Ocythoidae.
Octopus is the largest genus of octopuses, comprising more than 100 species. These species are widespread throughout the world's oceans. Many species formerly placed in the genus Octopus are now assigned to other genera within the family. The octopus has 8 arms, averaging 20 cm (8 in) long for an adult.
The giant Pacific octopus, also known as the North Pacific giant octopus, is a large marine cephalopod belonging to the genus Enteroctopus. Its spatial distribution encompasses much of the coastal North Pacific, from the Mexican state of Baja California, north along the United States' West Coast, and British Columbia, Canada; across the northern Pacific to the Russian Far East, south to the East China Sea, the Yellow Sea, the Sea of Japan, Japan's Pacific east coast, and around the Korean Peninsula. It can be found from the intertidal zone down to 2,000 m (6,600 ft), and is best-adapted to colder, oxygen- and nutrient-rich waters. It is, arguably, the largest octopus species on earth and can often be found in aquariums and research facilities in addition to the ocean.
The St. Augustine Monster is the name given to a large carcass, originally postulated to be the remains of a gigantic octopus, that washed ashore on the United States coast near St. Augustine, Florida in 1896. It is sometimes referred to as the Florida Monster or the St. Augustine Giant Octopus and is one of the earliest recorded examples of a globster. The species that the carcass supposedly represented has been assigned the binomial names Octopus giganteus and Otoctopus giganteus, although these are not valid under the rules of the ICZN.
Cephalopods, which include squids and octopuses, vary enormously in size. The smallest are only about 1 centimetre (0.39 in) long and weigh less than 1 gram (0.035 oz) at maturity, while the giant squid can exceed 10 metres (33 ft) in length and the colossal squid weighs close to half a tonne (1,100 lb), making them the largest living invertebrates. Living species range in mass more than three-billion-fold, or across nine orders of magnitude, from the lightest hatchlings to the heaviest adults. Certain cephalopod species are also noted for having individual body parts of exceptional size.
Octopus rubescens is the most commonly occurring shallow-water octopus on much of the North American West Coast and a ubiquitous benthic predator in these habitats. Its range extends from the southern Gulf of California to at least the Gulf of Alaska, but may also occur in the western Pacific Ocean. O. rubescens occurs intertidally to a depth of 300 m (980 ft).
Enteroctopus megalocyathus, also known as Patagonian red octopus (EN), Pulpo del sur (Chile) and Pulpo colorado (Argentina); is a medium-sized octopus, and the type species for the genus Enteroctopus.
Enteroctopus magnificus, also known as the southern giant octopus, is a large octopus in the genus Enteroctopus. It is native to the waters off Namibia and South Africa.
Amphioctopus is a genus of octopuses comprising around 16 species.
The seven-arm octopus, also known as the blob octopus or sometimes called septopus, is one of the two largest known species of octopus; the largest specimen ever discovered had an estimated total length of 3.5 m (11 ft) and mass of 75 kg (165 lb). The only other similarly large extant species is the giant Pacific octopus, Enteroctopus dofleini.
Cephalopod attacks on humans have been reported since ancient times. A significant portion of these attacks are questionable or unverifiable tabloid stories. Cephalopods are members of the class Cephalopoda, which includes all squid, octopuses, cuttlefish, and nautiluses. Some members of the group are capable of causing injury or death to humans.
Aggregata is a genus of parasitic alveolates belonging to the phylum Apicomplexa.
Enteroctopus zealandicus, also known as the yellow octopus, is a large octopus of the genus Enteroctopus. It is endemic to the waters surrounding New Zealand.
Franz Theodor Doflein was a German zoologist known for his studies of animal ecology.
Pinnoctopus cordiformis is a species of octopus found around the coasts of New Zealand. It is one of the most common species of octopus in the country.
Octopus conispadiceus is a species of long-ligula octopus, provisionally placed in the genus Octopus. It was first described by Madoka Sasaki in 1917 based on specimens bought at a fish market in Sapporo, Japan.
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