Meeting Abstract

42-2  Friday, Jan. 5 08:15 – 08:30  Get a Whiff of This: Octopus rubescens responses to conspecific inking SCHROCK, TA; Walla Walla University Taylir.Schrock@wallawalla.edu

Many social animals reduce the risk of predation by detecting signals of nearby conspecifics to alert them of potential threats. Such communication, however, is not limited to social animals. I hypothesize that octopuses, a non-social but highly intelligent marine invertebrate, may avoid predation by detection of conspecific inking. Metabolic rates of Octopus rubescens were used to determine detection of conspecific ink. Octopuses were exposed to concentrations of ink ranging from 0-0.004 mg/ml at random and ventilation and metabolic rates were measured. Metabolic responses appeared to vary with ink concentration in a dose dependent manner. Metabolic rates decreased from the negative control when subjected to more concentrated ink, but increased from the negative control when subjected to more dilute ink. This may account for the different octopus responses which may depend on the proximity of the inking event.