What The Media Got Wrong About Octopus Cities

Have you ever read an awesome science fact, only to do a little bit of digging  and learn the source blew things way out of proportion?

I’m gonna let you behind the  SciShow scenes for a bit.

Our script editors are always on the  hunt for weird and complex science stuff.

Last year, one of them was  reading a book about beavers, and 150-odd pages in, the  author suddenly mentioned there’s a type of octopus off the  coast of Australia that, quote, “builds the equivalent of a walled medieval city.” Which if true, would probably  make for a good SciShow episode.

As you may suspect, that quote turned out to be a gross mischaracterization of reality.

And this book is not the only  source to have gotten a bit… let’s say overenthusiastic… about what scientists actually uncovered.

But our script editor was  undeterred by this setback.

And with a little more research, it was clear that these  structures are still super weird, and reveal just how complex  the octopus lifestyle can be.

So let’s break down what’s really  going down in these octopus cities.

[ INTRO MUSIC ]

As much as we’d love to animate  an octopus gripping medieval tools with their many tentacles, and  shouting things like "forsooth!" and "the devil take thee!", the real animals behind these  not-actually-cities look like this: This is Octopus tetricus.

Also known as the gloomy octopus, because its large, sad eyes  give it a sort of emo vibe.

Until recently, scientists thought it was a solitary creature, preferring to hang out in  its bedroom alone listening to My Chemical Romance and nessa  barrett until three in the morning.

But then, they started discovering  sites where gloomy octopuses gather.

And for context, all of this  is taking place in Jervis Bay, which is about a two-hour drive  south of Sydney, Australia.