Common name: Octopus.

Scientific name: Octopus vulgaris Lamarck, 1798

Family: Octopodidae

Distribution and Habitat: Its presence in the region is very common. It inhabits the mediolittoral and infralittoral rocky bottoms; it is active mostly during the night when it gets out from the burrows to feed.

Description: Its body has a warty look with long arms, the lateral ones being bigger than the ventral ones. It has suckers, arranged in rows at the çower edges of the arms. Males are generally bigger than females, and they may reach 1 m in length and weigh 8 Kg. The males third tentacle is modified; it is used as a copulating organ. Its colouration depends on the surroundings. When it is frightened it acquires a whitish colour.

Conservation statute and Threats: -

Observations: It is caught with fish-hoops or fish pots, and it has a high commercial value.