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Dumbo Octopus Facts. Often called the cutest octopus in the world, the Dumbo octopus has fins on its mantle that look like the huge ears of Dumbo the Elephant. David Shale, NPL, Minden...
- 4 min
- Overview
- Darling dumbos
- Sunken treasure
- Deep respect
Scientists studying an underwater volcano stumbled upon an adorable deep-sea octopus, and their reaction was priceless.
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Scientists using a remotely operated vehicle to survey the seafloor earlier this week spotted something spooky: a ghostly creature with pale skin, bulging eyes, and what looked like translucent wings—the elusive dumbo octopus.
Scientists aboard the E/V Nautilus were exploring the Davidson Seamount, an inactive undersea volcano off the coast of California, when the spectral octopus greeted their submersible. As it drifted into full view, the team couldn't contain its excitement. (Watch a gulper eel inflate and deflate itself, shocking scientists.)
“Oh my, it’s so cute,” says one team member. “I love me a good cephalopod,” says another.
Seeing this deep-sea dweller was a treat for the researchers says Chad King, Nautilus’ chief scientist. “It's very exciting to see one live,” King says. “It’s something you don't come across every day.”
Dumbo octopuses (Grimpoteuthis sp.) inhabit the deepest, darkest parts of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, which makes studying them difficult. This dumbo was found two miles below the surface; others have been found at twice that depth.
Dumbo octopuses spend much of their lives suspended just above the seafloor. This is where they lay their eggs and hunt for prey such as crustaceans, bivalves, and worms.
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Octopuses are masters at flying under the radar, changing their coloration and texture to match their surroundings in seconds. The above octopus seen in the Bonin Islands near Japan in 2008.
Octopuses are masters at flying under the radar, changing their coloration and texture to match their surroundings in seconds. The above octopus seen in the Bonin Islands near Japan in 2008.
As delighted as the crew was to see this dumbo, time was tight, so they had to move on. The Nautilus had bigger figurative fish to fry. The ROV and her crew had traveled 80 miles off the coast of Monterey, California, to see what natural treasures are hidden within the boundaries of the Davidson Seamount.
The Davidson Seamount is one of the largest in U.S. waters. From base to crest, the seamount measures 7,480 feet tall, yet its summit is still 4,101 feet below the sea surface.
King says the seamount is teeming with life, but what kinds of life remains a mystery. The goal of Tuesday’s dive was to survey a completely unexplored rocky outcropping to the southeast of the seamount. In addition to spotting the charming cephalopod, the crew discovered fields of corals and sponges that King says “looked like they came right out of a Dr. Seuss book.”
“There were 10-foot-tall pink bubblegum corals and sponges big enough to walk into,” King says.
That’s where the Nautilus’ mission comes in. Founded by Robert Ballard, discoverer of the sunken R.M.S. Titanic and a National Geographic Explorer-at-Large, the Nautilus Exploration Program is on a mission to explore the depths of the Pacific Ocean.
Tuesday’s dive was one of several the Nautilus’ ROV will be conducting this year. King hopes that his underwater exploration, which is live-streamed on Twitter, will inspire others to care about conserving seamounts and other out-of-sight ocean habitats. (How much do you know about the deep sea?)
- Annie Roth
- 2 min
Brigit Katz. Correspondent. October 26, 2018. A dumbo octopus, "showing off." E/V Nautilus/YouTube. Deep in the Pacific Ocean, some 80 miles off the coast of Monterey, California, lies a...
Sep 23, 2023 · 23 September 2023. Pacific Ocean. An octopus with ear-like fins resembling the Disney character is seen at a depth of more than 1,000m.
- 52 sec
They are small animals, around 8 inches tall, and have a pair of fins located on their mantle—their namesake—and webbing between their arms. Grimpoteuthis swim often hover just above the seafloor looking for snails, worms, and other food. Watch rare (and beautiful) footage of a Dumbo octopod swimming in the wild.
Sep 27, 2023 · USA TODAY. 0:00. 0:31. Scientists exploring the deep waters near the Hawaiian Islands spotted a rare "Dumbo" octopus about a mile below the surface of the Pacific Ocean. The octopus was seen...
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Nov 6, 2020 · November 6, 2020: Dumbo Octopus. Image courtesy of the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, Exploring Puerto Rico’s Seamounts, Trenches, and Troughs. Download larger version (jpg, 1.4 MB). This rare dumbo octopus ( Cirrothauma murrayi) is often called the blind octopod due to the lack of a lens and reduced retina in its eyes. Its ...
