The Intelligent Leadership of the Pugnacious Octopus

Researchers studying several octopuses in the Red Sea near Eilat, Israel, discovered that not only did the cephalopods prowl the seafloor using camouflage, but also organized several reef fish into hunting parties. The new study published in Nature Ecology & Evolution shows Octopus cyanea maraud around in hunting groups with fish, often of several species.

Not only did the octopus decide what the hunting party should prey upon, but also researchers witnessed the cephalopods punching accompanying fish, apparently to keep them focused on the task and contributing to the collective effort.

The scientists tracked 13 octopuses for 20 hours, following them for 13 hunts, during which they observed between two and ten fish working with them.

The fish most punched were the ambush predators, most often blacktip groupers, the ones less inclined to move when hunting. The octopus would use punches to keep the group moving, benefitting by simply following the fish for food rather than performing what the researchers referred to as speculative hunting.

https://tinyurl.com/yen4ccw4.