Octopolis and Octlantis are two non-human settlements occupied by gloomy octopuses (Octopus tetricus) in Jervis Bay, in the Australian Capital Territory. The first site, named "Octopolis" by biologists, was found in 2009. Octopolis consists of a bed of shells (mainly scallop shells) in an ellipse shape, 2–3 meters diameter on its longer axis, with a single piece of anthropogenic detritus, believed to be scrap metal, within the site. Octopuses build dens by burrowing into the shell bed. The shells appear to provide a much better building material for the octopuses than the fine sediment around the site. Up to 14 octopuses have been seen at Octopolis at a single time. In 2016, a second settlement was found nearby, named "Octlantis," which includes no human-made objects and can house similar numbers of octopuses. [2] Both sites are within Booderee National Park. Some media accounts have described these sites as octopus "cities," but researchers who have worked on the sites view this as a misleading analogy. [3] [4]
