“A shape-shifting con artist that does impressions of other animals.”

Most octopuses can change color. The mimic octopus changes its entire personality. Discovered only in 1998, this Indo-Pacific shapeshifter doesn't just blend into the seafloor — it actively impersonates other animals, on demand, depending on the threat. Pursued by a fish? It flattens and ripples away as a venomous flatfish. Bothered by an aggressor? It tucks six arms away and waves the other two to become a banded sea snake. It can also do a passable lionfish, all stripes and menacing spines. Essentially a soft, boneless improv actor with a wardrobe of impressions and the nerve to use them, it solves most of life's problems by convincing predators it is, in fact, something far scarier than a snack.

Scientific name

Thaumoctopus mimicus

Size

Spanned arms about 60 cm.

Habitat

Sandy, silty bottoms of Indo-Pacific estuaries.

Diet

Small crustaceans and worms it digs from the sand.

Conservation

DD · Data Deficient

Picnic threat level

Picnic threat: low, but it might pretend to be a more dangerous guest.

Steve Childs, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons · Learn more →