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DiscoverSpeciesCephalopods

Common Long-arm Octopus

Octopus minor

  • Cephalopods
  • IUCN: Data deficient
  • Usual depth86 m
  • Water temperature13–21 °C
  • Best monthsApril, July, and October
  • How commonRare
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Photo credit: (c) anonymous, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA) · CC BY-SA · iNaturalist

About this species

Octopus minor, commonly known as the long arm octopus or the Korean common octopus, is a small-bodied octopus species distributed along the benthic coastal waters bordering China, Japan, and the Korean Peninsula. It lives at depths ranging from the sea surface to 200 metres. O. minor is commonly found in the mudflats of sub-tidal zones where it is exposed to significant environmental variation. It is grouped within the class Cephalopoda along with squids and cuttlefish.

Text from the Wikipedia article “Octopus minor”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article

Where and when

Where it has been recorded

Worldwide

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Best months

Worldwide (open data)

  • January: 0 records
  • February: 0 records
  • March: 0 records
  • April: 1 records
  • May: 0 records
  • June: 0 records
  • July: 1 records
  • August: 0 records
  • September: 0 records
  • October: 1 records
  • November: 1 records
  • December: 0 records

Depth and water temperature

Depth

Mostly recorded at 86 m · Deepest record: 86 m

  • 80–90 m: 1 records

Water temperature

Recorded in surface water of 13–21 °C

  • 12–14 °C: 1 records
  • 14–16 °C: 0 records
  • 16–18 °C: 0 records
  • 18–20 °C: 1 records
  • 20–22 °C: 2 records

Names and classification

English
Common Long-arm Octopus, Korean Common Octopus, Long-armed Octopus, Long-arm Octopus, Long Arm Octopus, Nakji, Whiparm octopus
Names in 7 more languages
German
Langarm-Oktopus
Spanish
Pulpo antenado
French
Poulpe fouet
Indonesian
Gurita Korea, Gurita lengan panjang
Japanese
テナガダコ
Korean
낙제, 낙지, 석거, 장어
Simplified Chinese
Cháng-Xiāo, 長腕小章魚, 長蛸

Other scientific names: Polypus variabilis

Similar species

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).
  • 4 open-data records from 1906 to 2009.
  • Species data updated November 5, 2026.

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