Octopuses get most of the attention for problem-solving and tool use, but squid have fascinating learning abilities and visual communication too.

While researching an article for my site, ANMLZONE, I kept coming back to one limitation: octopus cognition has been studied much more extensively. More evidence isn’t necessarily the same as greater intelligence.

What squid behaviors or studies do you think deserve more attention?

My full comparison:
Octopus vs Squid: Which Is Smarter?

Photo: Karim saari / Wikimedia Commonsmoving_on_sandy_seabed_during_Sentinelle_4_project-Musée_Subaquatique_de_Marseille-Anse_des_Catalans-_2025.jpg) · CC BY 4.0.

the left one is made of ebony wood and the right one is made of tamarind wood

A relative went on a crab boat for tourists in Alaska. They had loads of king crabs to show off...and also this female giant Pacific octopus. Routinely, they wander into the crab traps and are happily munching on the livestock when the fisherman pull up the traps. When that happens on this boat, they keep them for the day in a tank full of king crab for them to munch on. In the first picture, she's eating another king crab that she freshly snatched. After the day is up (and usually by then, another octopus will have gotten themselves in the crab trap), they put them back in the Pacific Ocean where they belong.

As for the fisherman holding her, if for some reason you must hold an octopus, this is how to do it. Mantle and head supported, arms free, beak supported without contact, and only for one minute (as this gentleman did). She went right back to eating her crabs as if nothing had happened (anxious octopuses don't eat) once he put her down, and I'm happy to say she was released the next sunrise without issue.

They live together. The goby eats the leftovers and the octopus tolerates him.

DNA regions separated by millions of genetic letters can become neighbors when a chromosome folds. In octopus, squid and cuttlefish, those contacts offer clues to how ancient genome reshuffling may have altered gene regulation.

A University of Vienna-led study in Nature Communications compared this 3D architecture across three cephalopod species. First author Thea Rogers and colleagues combined contact maps with gene activity and evolutionary comparisons, then tested one candidate regulatory region in squid embryos.

The findings suggest that genome organization can preserve essential connections while allowing others to change. They also point to a possible contribution to cephalopods' elaborate nervous systems. The work does not demonstrate that DNA folding alone produced problem-solving abilities or rapid camouflage.

hi!! im an artist and i want to draw a really cool octopus from a reference photo!! ive googled and everything for “octopus reference photos” and it is all made by ai. does anyone have a photo i could use of a REAL octopus?? its crazy how hard it is to find a real picture of a real animal without it being doctored by ai :/

Hey r/octopus! I’m a tattoo artist from San Francisco, and I just outlined this octopus chest piece for a customer during a recent guest spot in San Diego.
We spent the entire day applying the outline. There’s a lot of detail in those arms and suckers! Color sessions are still to come, but I thought you folks might enjoy seeing the work in progress alongside my original drawing.
What color do you think this octopus should be? I’d love to hear your ideas!

📸@adamskytattoos

Two branchial hearts pump blood through the gills, and a third systemic heart circulates it to the rest of the body. When an octopus swims, the systemic heart stops, which is one reason they tire quickly while swimming and prefer crawling.

This is from one of my favourite octopus encounters to date.

This Giant Pacific Octopus was out hunting, checking every rock and crack for something to eat. Eventually, it reached into a crack already occupied by another local giant.

At first, the interaction seemed like an investigation. Was there a big snack hiding in there? But things quickly took a turn, teaching our octopus buddy that not all fish are friends.

mullen_dives

The Anchored One - My interpretation of The Hanged Man tarot card.

to all Octaviusses, Osirisses, Luc, Jacques, Gaspard and all the other plushies out there.

My gang looks like party is over.