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SEAQUARIUM UP IN ARMS OVER NEW ARRIVAL

Staff at SeaQuarium Rhyl are celebrating the arrival of a new weird and wonderful inhabitant — a charismatic common octopus.

Named ‘Hank’ by his keepers, the strange new creature arrived on 27th June and spent a month in quarantine, before moving to his new home last month in the Night hunter’s zone.

Common octopus belong to the cephalopod family which are a group of molluscs which are said to be the most intelligent of all invertebrates. Their intelligence makes them deadly predators, hunting crustaceans and shelled molluscs at night.
 

They have some other incredible adaptations, such as the ability to change colour in accordance with their emotions or as camouflage. They can also mask themselves as a form of defence, by releasing a cloud of ink into the water, allowing them to make a rapid escape.

Richard Morrilly, Aquarist at Seaquarium Rhyl explained, “Octopus are highly intelligent invertebrates that need daily mental stimulation. We provide our common octopus with enrichment devices such as tubs, jars and small mazes that allow them to interact and play with the objects, usually with food in them, such as a tasty crab. We hope our guests enjoy watching Hank exploring his enrichment, as much as we do!”

Hank is still young and eventually his mantle (body) will grow to about 25cm with his dexterous tentacles reaching a length of around a metre.

In the wild, common octopus can be found world-wide, but are most abundant in the Mediterranean Sea, eastern Atlantic Ocean and in Japanese waters. They can also be found around the southern coasts of Britain.

Hank can be seen during the current ‘Explorers Month’ at the aquarium. This is a month-long event running until 31 August for the school summer holidays. Budding explorers can look for Hank and his neighbours as part of the interactive trail around the aquarium, or they can take part in some arts and crafts in the Explorers Craft Club, or watch a themed seal show.

Explorers activities are included in the standard admission price, with the exception of the trail, which includes a small fee. SeaQuarium Rhyl is open 10am daily with last admissions at 5pm. Admission tickets are valid all day, so there is the chance to come back and see the main seal feed at 12pm and 4pm.