Awesome Octopus Mums
- Tuesday 6th May 2014
- Octopus
Female octopuses have good odds when it comes to reproducing - they lay between 50,000 and 200,000 eggs depending on the species.
Once she's laid the eggs, she'll spend the next month or so caring for all her eggs by protecting them against predators and even pushing water currents in their direction so the eggs get enough oxygen.
While she's looking after her eggs, she will not hunt and will even go to the extreme of ingesting her own arms for sustenance. When the eggs start hatching, she will leave her protective home too weak to defend herself from predators.
It's all in the best interest of her children and the future generation of octopuses. Now that's a sacrificial mum!!
You can see our octopus at SEA LIFE Sydney Aquarium in the Shipwreck zone.
