Octopus Facts
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The average life span in the wild is 1 to 2 years.
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Their favorite foods are crabs, shrimps, and lobsters rank among their favorite foods, but some can attack larger prey such as sharks.
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Octopuses have three hearts.
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The common octopus weights 6.6-22 pounds and can be 12" to 36" in size.
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Octopuses have been around a long time - octopus fossils have been found from 296 million years ago.
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The plural of "octopus" is "octopuses."
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Octopus arms have a mind of their own.
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Octopuses have blue blood.
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If threatened, octopuses shoot an inky fluid that darks the water and confuses the aggressor.
The Monterey Bay Aquarium
Today we're visiting one of our favorite places! Learn about the animals, their habitats, and care.
Check out the live cams to see what they're up to right now! Which did you like the most?
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Want to dive deeper and learn more? Check out the education section.
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Marvel at the long legs of the black-necked stilts.
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Spot the brightly colored beaks of the black oystercatcher.
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Look for leg bands on our birds, which help identify them in the Aviary exhibit.
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Coral reef community
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Follow the fish around the corals in ¡Viva Baja! Life on the Edge.
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Spot the Cortez wrasse, scrawled filefish, and Cortez angelfish.
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Watch the graceful movement of the sea nettles and learn how they hunt and survive.
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Kelp forests provide food and shelter
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See how many different kinds of fish and invertebrates are swim around and clinging to the kelp and algae.
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Look for leopard sharks, giant sea bass, and, if you're lucky, wolf-eels.
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Monterey Bay view from the deck
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From the deck, identify the birds and sea mammals of Monterey Bay. Watch for black cormorants perched on a rock, harbor seals and sea otter.
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Watch these delicate and translucent bells pulsate with the current.
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Distinctive characteristics include bright, petal-like gonads and a fine stinging fringe for hunting.
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What they eat transforms their colors!
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Open sea
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Wonder at the diverse community of open-sea animals: giant tuna, pelagic rays and green sea turtles.
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Penguins
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Energetic and inquisite, watch these African penguins dart and dive!
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Check out the daily feeding at 3p.m. PDT.
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Like us, the southern sea otters love to play with toys, lounge and snooze.
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Check out the narrated feeding at 1:30 p.m. PDT.
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Sharks
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Look for sevengill sharks, leopard sharks, spiny dogfish and the elusive Pacific angel shark – all Monterey Bay dwellers.
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Look for big skates and bat rays and see sturgeon, rockfish, giant sea bass, and flatfish.