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- Blue bottles (e.g. Portuguese man-of-war (Physalia spp.)) are colonial
animals where individuals are specialized to do specific functions. So in one colony
you find individuals that form the float, reproduce, feed or protect the colony.
- Calamari (as we know it when served or eaten) is a squid or chokka (Loligo
sp.). These animals are caught when they aggregate to mate, shortly after which
the female lays her eggs. These animals form an important part of the food-chain,
they prey on small fish and are important prey for sharks, fish, marine mammals
and seabirds.
- Despite its great strength, the octopus tires easily. The oxygen-carrying component
of its blood, hemocyanin, is copper-based and is less efficient than the iron-based
hemoglobin of humans. Therefore, a struggling octopus will quickly go into oxygen
deprivation, and becomes lethargic.
- Octopus females (such as the Common Octopus Octopus vulgaris that is found
along the southern African coast) look after and care for the eggs until they hatch.
Small octopus emerge directly from the egg. Octopus live for only a short time,
one to two years.
- Sea urchins and sea cucumbers are related. Both belong to the Phylum Echinodermata.
Sea urchins have a hard almost round calcium carbonate shell with spines while sea
cucumbers have a elongated body with a soft leathery skin. Both have a radial symmetry
and 5 pairs of tube feet with which them to attach to rocks.
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