Octopuses Use Mirrors to Find Hidden Food 73% of the Time
Updated
Updated · ScienceDaily · Jun 11
Octopuses Use Mirrors to Find Hidden Food 73% of the Time
3 articles · Updated · ScienceDaily · Jun 11
Summary
Dartmouth researchers found three California two-spot octopuses learned to use mirrors to locate food hidden behind them, choosing the correct side about 73% of the time.
In the test, a virtual crab appeared behind each animal and was visible only in the mirror; the octopus had to turn away from the reflection and move to the real location for a live crab reward.
The animals grew faster across trials and often headed toward the projected crab's position rather than the mirror itself, suggesting they treated the mirror as a spatial tool.
The study, published in Current Biology, is the first to show an invertebrate using mirrors to understand its environment to find prey—a skill previously documented only in some mammals and birds.
Researchers said the result may point to convergent evolution of spatial cognition and possibly internal maps in octopuses, though they said more work is needed to confirm that.