[classicman]

Big Octopus Squeezes Into Tiny Box

Biologist Calls Food Locked Away 'Enrichment Activity'

Posted: 6:16 am EST March 6, 2009
BOSTON -- An octopus at the New England Aquarium surprised staff and visitors Thursday by squeezing its 7-foot-long, 30-pound body into a 14-inch square acrylic box.

The octopus, named Truman, squeezed into the box in pursuit of food. Biologist Bill Murphy told TV station WMUR that he had placed a couple of crabs inside a 6-inch square cube and locked it, and then placed that cube inside the 14-inch box with a different latch. The feeding method is a puzzle designed to entertain and enrich octopi, which exhibit an interest in such puzzles.

"I start the octopus off with the small box, and once he has mastered that lock, I switch to another box, and once he has mastered each individual box, I put a box inside a box to keep him active and challenged," Murphy said.

Murphy said Truman usually leaves the boxes alone until the aquarium closes because octopi are typically nocturnal. Truman normally opens each lock individually, but this time, he was apparently too impatient.

[Word quickly spread among Aquarium staff and guests as a crowd gathered for the thirty minute spectacle.]
New England Aquarium
Word quickly spread among Aquarium staff and guests as a crowd gathered for the thirty minute spectacle.
Murphy said the octopus squeezed his legs and large head through a 2-inch hole in the exterior box. The only hard part on an octopus is its small beak, so it can squeeze into tight spaces.

A crowd gathered around the tank to watch as word spread of Truman's feat.

Once inside the 14-inch box, Truman tried to undo the latch on the smaller box. But he wasn't able to manage it after 30 minutes and eventually emerged, leg by leg, from the box.

Officials said this was the first time such behavior had been witnessed and photographed at the aquarium.