11-4-15

Alexandra Ewing

North-American Octopus

Enteroctopus dofleini

The North-American Octopus lives in the North-Pacific Ocean. This organism lives in tidal pools and under boulders. The North-American Octopus belongs to the domain of Eukarya and the kingdom of Animalia.  This organism is scientifically organized into the phylum of Mollusca and the class of Cephalopoda. This organism is grouped into the order of Octopoda and family of Octopodidae. The North-American Octopus is grouped into the genus of Enteroctopus and the species of dofleini. This organism has bilateral symmetry and is exothermic, meaning that it is warm-blooded. A few of this organism’s prey include clams, scallops, and crabs meaning that this organism is a heterotroph.  A few of the North-American Octopus’ predators include humans, sea otters, and seals. An interesting fact about the North-American Octopus is that it can camouflage into almost any pattern. A behavioral adaptation for the North-American Octopus is that it can squeeze its body into any cracks.  A structural adaptation is that they can change color to camouflage with their environment. A functional adaptation for this organism would be that their breathing sensitive, which means that when they get hot they breathe faster to help cool them down. The North-American Octopus has 8 arms and the largest ever found was 30 feet!