The Brain of the Octopus: Exploring Its Intelligence

Behind one of the most intelligent animals on the planet, there is a unique brain.

We live on a planet full of fascinating living beings. Beyond humans, who have been able to build entire civilizations with unparalleled technological and social networks, other species also show incredible skills and characteristics.

There are birds capable of flying at tens of kilometers per hour, mammals whose size exceeds that of a small building and felines that can detect prey in absolute darkness. Abilities worthy of any comic book superhero.

But among the extensive biodiversity that still populates the earth, unfortunately decreasing, there is an animal whose properties are especially remarkable: the octopus, of which some 300 different varieties (cephalopods) have been identified.

In this article we will take a closer look at what makes it so fascinating, with a special emphasis on the anatomy and properties of the octopus brain. properties of the octopus brainThe octopus' brain, the organ that endows it with unique cognition.

What does the octopus brain look like?

The first thing that calls the attention when observing the brain of the octopus is that it is by far the largest of all invertebrate brains.. Thus, it dominates at the top of the pyramid a whole category whose representatives are counted by tens of thousands (about 55,000). In addition, it has the highest ratio in the equation of the relative weight of its brain to its body, within this same classification, a common indicator to infer the intelligence of any living being. This is a representation of the same, which appears in The Anatomy of the Nervous System of Octopus Vulgarisby J. Z. Young:

The ratio between the size of the octopus' body and its brain is similar to what can be seen in mammals such as whales, which have been able to demonstrate great intellectual endowments and sophisticated social skills. In addition, the number of neurons (raw) is close to that of a dog, an animal that has accompanied man since the dawn of time and stands as one of his most faithful companions. This fact is an evolutionary exception that has attracted the interest of the entire scientific community.

Its nuclear brain, inserted in a cartilage capsule inside the head (it has no bones), represents only a discrete percentage of the total extension of the nervous system. The rest of its neurons are located in its tentacles.The nervous system, arranged as interconnected ganglia (mini-brains), and giving shape to a very complex constellation of cells (100,000,000-500,000,000,000) that react in a tremendously fast way to triggering environmental circumstances, which forms a unique system in zoology.

If we analyze the distribution of its nervous system, we observe that only 10% of it is located in the predictable area for mammals: the inside of the head. The 30% is located in two large lobes (15% for each case) that border its lateral surface (behind both eyes) and whose function is the processing of visual stimuli. Finally, the remaining 60% is distributed among all the tentacles, so that the largest percentage of neurons of the the highest percentage of neurons available to this animal is present in almost all of its body mass..

In the brain of the octopus, aligned contiguously, are organs that allow the animal to orient its position in space in places that light cannot reach (as some live in the abyssal depths), which is complemented by a pair of eyes extraordinarily adapted to darkness (and similar in structure to those of humans). We are talking about statocysts; which they share with species such as bivalves, echinoderms and crustaceans.

In general terms, the octopus has a multiple brainand not only with a nervous structure located inside its head. This organ is distributed throughout the body, forming ganglia that control each of its limbs, and which provide it with an enormous adaptive capacity.

It is a structure distinct from that of mammals, an evolutionary "alternative" that could provide us with information about forms of consciousness that still elude our understanding (and that have recently been used to design robotic artificial intelligences).

The intelligence of the octopus

If we go back to the evolutionary history of octopuses, we find that they represent an example of extraordinary intelligence not only in the category to which they belong, but in the animal kingdom as a whole. They are living beings older than the dinosaurs themselves.They have had the opportunity to survive for millions of years to forge refined cognitive skills, and they constitute one of the greatest examples of past intellect that we have access to.

The studies that have been conducted on this issue have demonstrated that they are capable of using tools (such as coconut shells in which to hide) and learn by observing other octopuses solving a problem, keeping what they have assimilated for days without the need to rehearse it. In addition, the octopus (in its more than 300 species) has a unique capacity: each of its tentacles can "think" by itself.

More specifically, when an octopus observes a situation in which it has to act (a prey to feed on or a predator to flee from), it sets in motion a reaction in which every part of its body participates, in order to determine the most efficient pattern of behavior. In this way, and due to the positional multiplicity available to it (since it lacks joints), it is able to select an enormous variety of actions to solve problems (from opening jars to getting out of complex mazes).

The process that is set in motion is different from that of human beings. In our case, the demands of the situation are matched by a restricted body scheme (rigid and poorly articulated skeleton), which translates into limited reactions to resolve situations. The octopus is so flexible that it does not need to consider its body limits, so it only stores behavioral patterns that are activated by its own body. stores behavioral patterns that are activated when needed, thus providing a quicker response.The octopus is so flexible that it does not need to consider its body limits, so it only stores behavioral patterns that are activated when needed, thus offering a faster and more efficient response to deal with environmental demands.

In addition to all this, the brain distributed in the tentacles can establish communication with the rest of the octopus' limbs, so that they coordinate without becoming entangled (which would be life-threatening). This is because each of the ganglia not only connects with the centralized brain, but also with the others, thus enabling extraordinary fine motor skills. All this is enhanced by the fact that the brain located in the head hardly participates in the moment when the suction cups of the rest of its appendages, which have their own free will, act.

It has been observed that the sectioning of one of the tentacles (they can mutilate themselves in an attempt to escape) does not imply that it would "die" immediately, but that it would continue to move and act with purpose for about an hour, confirming that it has autonomy. For this reason, despite being separated from the body, they can make decisions such as camouflaging themselves (safeguarding itself from danger) and recognizing a different tentacle as a part of itself (through a kind of chemical receptors located in the suckers).

The personality of the octopus

In addition to possessing great intelligence, there is evidence that cephalopods have stable personality traits that differentiate them in a very noticeable way, and that they even have a tendency to group together according to the degree of similarity (demonstrating social preferences). Some of them are sullen and spend most of their time enclosed in caves, which they plug with rocks to increase their privacy (their elasticity allows them to "sneak" into almost any hole).

There are also very aggressive octopuses, to the point of being able to attack and devour other octopuses. On the other hand, they can form an idea of the human beings with whom they feel comfortable or uncomfortable, like or dislike, like or dislike, like or dislike.They can also form an idea of humans with whom they like or dislike, forging a memory that lasts for months or even years (showing a large long-term memory store). As animals that do not have a long life expectancy, it can be said that they create memories that extend throughout their life cycle.

Finally, it has been shown that octopuses are prone to play with other members of their species, a behavior that has been classified as an indicator of high intelligence in the field of ethology. This is an action that is not intended to guarantee survival, nor is it explained as a reaction to immediate environmental contingencies, but rather for enjoyment and leisure without further pretension. This recreational habit is observed exclusively in the most complex species, especially among vertebrates.

Other fantastic things about octopuses

Up to this point, it has become clear that octopuses are fascinating animals. Beyond their history (which goes back 33,000,000 years), they are also fascinating. their astonishing intelligence and their ability to have a personality of their own.They also have a number of additional characteristics that make them one of the best adapted and prepared animals for survival (after all, they have been doing it for a long, long time).

For example, they are able to camouflage themselves perfectly in the environment, to propel ink to elude a predator that has detected them, to attack their prey with a powerful beak and to poison any overconfident fish with paralyzing toxins. Arguably one of the great kings of the ocean... in fact, their Blood is even blue! And pumped by a total of three hearts, no more and no less.

In conclusion, octopuses remind us that we live in a wonderful world, and that nature is capable of molding authentic works of engineering whose presence will always fascinate the curious human being. It is our responsibility to look after the health of our planet, so that they can continue to stimulate our curiosity., so that they can continue to stimulate the imagination of generations to come.

Bibliographical references:

• Guglielmino, E. and Tsagarakis, N. (2010). An octopus anatomy-inspired robotic arm. International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, 18(22), 3091 - 3096.
• O'Brien, C.E., Ponte, G. and Fiorito, G. (2018). Octopus. Animal Behavior, 4(2), 1 - 8.