Algae Octopus
Abdopus aculeatus
- Usual depth0–1 m
- Water temperature25–29 °C
- Best monthsJanuary, March, and May
- How commonRare
Photo credit: (c) Pauline Walsh Jacobson, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
About this species
Abdopus aculeatus is a small species of octopus in the order Octopoda. It has the common name algae octopus due to its typical resting camouflage, which resembles a gastropod shell overgrown with algae. It is small in size with a mantle around the size of a small orange and arms 25 cm in length, and is adept at mimicking its surroundings.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Abdopus aculeatus”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article
Where and when
Where it has been recorded
Worldwide
Loading the map
Best months
Worldwide (open data)
- January: 4 records
- February: 1 records
- March: 4 records
- April: 4 records
- May: 6 records
- June: 2 records
- July: 1 records
- August: 3 records
- September: 3 records
- October: 2 records
- November: 4 records
- December: 4 records
Depth and water temperature
Depth
Mostly recorded at 0–1 m · Deepest record: 1 m
Water temperature
Recorded in surface water of 25–29 °C
Photos
no rights reserved · CC0 1.0 · iNaturalist 
(c) Gregor Bailar, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
Names and classification
- English
- Algae Octopus, Prickly Octopus
Names in 2 more languages
- Japanese
- ウデナガカクレダコ
- Thai
- ปลาหมึกสายหัวหนาม
Other scientific names: Octopus (Abdopus) aculeatus, Octopus aculeatus, Octopus harmandi
Similar species
- Mosaic Drop-arm Octopus
Abdopus abaculus
Big blue octopusOctopus cyanea
Greater blue-ringed octopusHapalochlaena lunulata
Mimic octopusThaumoctopus mimicus
WonderpusWunderpus photogenicus
Sources and credits
Names and taxonomy: WoRMS (CC BY 4.0) and the GBIF Backbone (CC BY 4.0). Photos: iNaturalist observers, each under the licence shown (CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA).
- Depth, temperature, months and maps: records from OBIS and GBIF under CC0 or CC BY.
- Descriptions: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA, each linked to its article.
- Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
- 59 open-data records from 1882 to 2018.
- Species data updated October 26, 2026.
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