Octopuses always attack prey with the same tentacle.
Octopuses always attack with the same tentacle
Scientists have discovered that the eight-armed sea creatures have a dominant tentacle and always attack their prey using the second arm from the middle of their body.
Researchers from the University of Minnesota conducted a series of filmed experiments on the California two-spot octopus and used slow-motion footage to analyse how they entrap and eat their prey.
The octopuses were found to use different hunting tactics to that of crabs and shrimps as the other sea creatures move at different speeds.
Trevor Wardill, an assistant professor at the College of Biological Sciences, said: "Normally when you look at an octopus for a short while, nothing is repeatable.
"The surprising thing with octopuses that the sort of general public may not understand is they hunt with just one eye. So there's one eye looking out into the world in one direction, and one eye looking in the other direction.
"And so the eye spies the food item... will then be directing arms towards the prey. And they'll always, and I mean always, use arms on the side that the eye is pointing towards the food item."