Octopus lifecycle

Giant Pacific Octopus

Lifecycle

First, the female releases a chemical attractment. Males are drawn to the female by following the smell. So the problem is that the female may attract more than one male, who sometimes fight for the opportunity to mate with the female. The stronger one will win, but in some cases the female mates with more than one male. Once the female found its mate, the male would transfer packages of sperm to the female, with the end of its third arm, where there are no suckers. The female stores the sperm for later use. Once the male leaves, the female looks for a den in which to lay her eggs. Usually its under a large rock. She then gathers other rocks from surrounding area to close up the den, leaving just a little gap. Then she lays her really small eggs (up to 57,000). The female stays in the den for about six months, taking care of the eggs and making sure that they don't get covered by algae and bacteria. She blows oxygen across the eggs, ensuring a constant oxygen supply. The baby octopuses grow in the eggs and when the big night arrives, the nest of eggs will hatch. The tiny babies will swim to the water surface, which is a long and dangerous journey for them. The female crawls out the den and dies. The octopus larvae will move to the sea floor once they are bigger. It grows and grows and eventually, only sea lions, seals, halibuts, and lincods will be able to feed on an adult octopus. They get sexually mature in about three years and the cycle starts from the beginning.