Let’s take a closer look at one of our most sought-after critters in Puerto Galera! The blue ringed octopus or more commonly known as ‘the blue ring’ is one of our biggest crowd-pleasers. The scientific name for the octopus is Hapalochlaena maculosa. They grow to around 20 cm in size and weigh a massive 25 grams.
What is really unique is the blue ring is the only venous creature in the world that doesn’t make its own venom. The octopus finds bacteria in the water and stores it within its saliva. If you are a crab that’s in its path while hunting at night then you better look out. The blue ring uses its razor-sharp beak to break into the shell of a crab, it will then basically spit the bacteria contaminated saliva inside the crab and it will become paralyzed making it much easier to eat. Crabs reading this blog will be quaking in their boots.
The blue ring also has three hearts which pump blue blood around its body. Each octopus has around sixty blue rings on its body. You might have noticed that if the octopus is relaxed then the blue rings are not visible. Only once the octopus is feeling threatened it will flash its vibrant blue rings telling you to back off. There has only been a handful of human deaths from the octopus bite in the entire history of the planet but it can still happen. So, its better to keep your hands to yourself underwater.
This wonder of nature can be found on many dive sites around Puerto Galera. Some hot spots to look for them include giant clams, Fantasea reef and Small la Laguna. They are most active at night time when they are feeding so we recommend doing some night dives with us at Scandi Divers to increase your chances of some blue ring interaction.
Hope you enjoy the video below:
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