In 2018, he noticed Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) and a team of experts from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) have discovered that there is a hotspot off the coast of California teeming with octopuses. The place was named Polybekert, and for three years they monitored what was happening here, and the answer that was revealed from the collected data was Advancement of science Published in a magazine.
Measurement in Polypicart Water: The robotic arm of the robotic diver examines the properties of water in the environment of octopuses.
Source: Mbari
At a depth of 3,200 metres, the sea water temperature is 1.6 ° C, but in Polebkert, thanks to the thermal waters, 11 ° C can be measured. This makes a big difference for cold-blooded octopuses! However, the hot waters of an extinct undersea volcano created the largest gathering place for octopuses: Powerful octopus Representatives of the so-called species swim here from long distances due to the “thermal bath”.
Polypania protects its eggs with its body – the elongated, proboscis-like formations visible below.
Source: Mbari
In the cold, their vital functions, metabolism, and even fetal growth slow down. This is why deep-sea polyps grow much slower than polyps that live in warm, shallow waters. In the cold, almost freezing water at a depth of 3,200 metres, it would take at least 5 to 8 years for the embryo to develop. Since mother octopuses guard their future offspring until they hatch, they can be identified based on the unique markings of particular mothers, and thus they can tell how long it takes for the young here to hatch. The average time was only 1.8 years, which means that heat amazingly accelerated its evolution.
Tests revealed that thanks to the warm water, animals that come here can reproduce much more successfully than their relatives who breed elsewhere. Young octopuses that develop faster and hatch early are exposed to risks for a shorter period of time, such as predators, compared to those that develop much more slowly in cold environments.
Dead Polybania – After the babies hatch, the mothers’ lives end.
Source: Mbari
The octopus mass also attracts a whole small ecosystem: scavengers and predators are also found in this place. Mother octopuses die when their young hatch, so there is always a carcass waiting to be consumed. In addition, deep-sea corals, sponges and various fish live here. The site is now protected, thanks to its extraordinary wildlife.
