Tuberculate Pelagic Octopus
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For the harpy of Greek mythology, see Ocypete.
| Tuberculate Pelagic Octopus | ||||||||||||||||
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 Male with attached hectocotylus that has broken free from its sac.
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| Ocythoe tuberculata Rafinesque, 1814 |
The Tuberculate Pelagic Octopus (Ocythoe tuberculata), also known as the Football Octopus, is a pelagic species that is relatively unresearched in terms of behaviour and life-cycle.
The females are around a metre long when full-grown. The males are considerably smaller at around 10 cm.
As a species, they are unique among cephalopods in possessing a true gas bladder. They are also the only known ovoviviparous cephalopod.
Young females and mature males have been observed residing inside salps, although little is known about this relationship.
 Cut-away drawing of the viscera |
 Details of the hectocotylus |
 O. tuberculata paralarva |
