Turquet’s octopus:
Recent research published in the journal Science, unveiled a surprising connection between the movements of Turquet’s octopuses and the stability of the West Antarctic ice sheet.
- Turquet’s octopus is a species of benthicoctopus with a circumpolar Antarctic distribution.
- The species has a wide depth range, occurring from shallow waters to 4,000 m deep.
- It is characterised by the absence of a skin ridge around the body, and its nearly smooth skin, which is covered with low granular bumps.
- In the wild it is known to be preyed upon by Patagonian toothfish off South Georgia and Weddell seals off the South Shetland Islands.
- These cephalopods, inhabitants of the Southern Ocean, navigated the region when the ice sheet melted approximately 125,000 years ago.
- Conservation Status: IUCN: Least concern (LC)
