In the depths of the Red Sea, there is a fascinating co-lab going down. Octopuses are forming hunting parties with various types of fish. According to a study published in Nature Ecology and Evolution, octopuses, long considered solitary hunters, will work with fish to make their hunts more efficient — and if those fish aren’t cooperating, the octopuses will physically assault them.
Octopuses engage in a type of hunting called “speculative hunting.” That’s when a creature just kind of pokes around different places looking for a thing that moves because if it moves, it might be edible. Octopuses will probe crevices in reefs hoping a fish shakes loose. It is as time-consuming and inefficient as it sounds.
Videos by VICE
But, if they team up with a few fish followers, suddenly the hunt gets a little bit easier. The fish, like grouper, will move swiftly between hunting spots and near crevices, signaling to the octopus that there is something of interest in the area.
This significantly cuts down on the speculative hunting time by essentially giving the octopus a lead. The fish benefit by being able to catch whatever prey they are interested in when the octopus flushes them out. Teamwork makes the dream work.
But then some fish, like the blacktip grouper, just want to benefit from the octopuses’ ability to strike fear into the hearts of the groupers’ prey without contributing much to the hunt. These lazy bastard fish will hang out in the background, keeping an eye on the hunt, and then swoop in if a delectable treat gets scared out of a hiding spot by the octopus.
As you probably know, however, octopi are extremely intelligent creatures and can detect when a lazy freeloader fish is trying to benefit from the octopus and the other fishes’ hard work. So, the octopus will quite literally punch the freeloader fish away from them and the rest of the hunting party.
You’ve probably felt helpless as you are stuck with a lazy bastard on a group project who wanted to do none of the work but reap all the benefits. An octopus does not take put up with that shit. An octopus would rather rock that freeloader right in the mouth and tell him to back off. What I’m saying is, be like the octopus.
