Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | CoL | ITIS | WoRMS

Cephalopoda | Octopoda | Enteroctopodidae | Octopodinae

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Benthic; depth range 0 - 1500 m (Ref. 96968). Temperate; 67°N - 22°N, 127°E - 109°W (Ref. 275)

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Introductions

Indo-Pacific and Northwest Atlantic: from Baja California northwest to Alaska and west to Japan. Tropical to boreal.

Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: L_m ? range ? - ? cm Max length : 300 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 275); max. published weight: 272.0 kg (Ref. 122030)

World's largest octopus species (Refs. 106261, 106263). It's mantle length is to at least 60 cm (Ref. 96968). Common weight: 2,000 to 10,000 g (Ref. 275). Females grow larger than males (Ref. 3722). Radial spread may measure up to 9.8 m (Ref. 99323).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae

Members of the class Cephalopoda are gonochoric. Male and female adults usually die shortly after spawning and brooding, respectively. Mating behavior: Males perform various displays to attract potential females for copulation. During copulation, male grasp the female and inserts the hectocotylus into the female's mantle cavity where fertilization usually occurs. Life cycle: Embryos hatch into planktonic stage and live for some time before they grow larger and take up a benthic existence as adults.

Main reference References | Coordinator | Collaborators

Roper, C.F.E., M.J. Sweeney and C.E. Nauen. 1984. (Ref. 275)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-1)

Least Concern (LC) ; Date assessed: 28 July 2014

CITES status (Ref. 108899)

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

Human uses

Fisheries: commercial; bait: usually
| FishSource | Sea Around Us

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Preferred temperature (Ref. 115969): 2.4 - 9.7, mean 6.2 (based on 261 cells).

Vulnerability (Ref. 71543): Very high vulnerability (90 of 100).

Price category (Ref. 80766): High.

Nutrients : Calcium = 126 [75, 177] mg/100g; Iron = 4.79 [1.67, 7.92] mg/100g; Protein = 15.5 [13.7, 17.4] %; Omega3 = 0.414 [0.262, 0.566] g/100g; Selenium = 57.8 [48.5, 67.2] μg/100g; VitaminA = 0 μg/100g; Zinc = 1.97 [0.92, 3.02] mg/100g (wet weight); based on nutrient studies.

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