Wild and Kind Kids Podcast

The Day Octopus

• Wild and Kind Kids • Season 2 • Episode 1

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0:00 | 22:19

Why does a day octopus hide? And what happens when it finally decides to be seen?

In this episode of Wild and Kind Kids, we travel to the coral reefs of Hawaii to meet Ollie, a shy day octopus who is a master of camouflage. As Ollie blends into rocks, coral, and sand, he dreams of exploring a reef on the other side of a wide stretch of open ocean floor. But getting there means facing his biggest fear.

Along the way, kids will discover amazing day octopus facts, including:

  • How octopuses sense the world with their arms
  • What an “octopus garden” is
  • How octopus use ink to escape predators

We'll also learn about coral reefs, why they're important to ocean animals, and how kids can help protect them through this week's Wild and Kind Mission. 

Perfect for curious kids who love animals, ocean life, science, nature, and stories with heart.

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Learn along with us and explore some of the resources we consulted:

SPEAKER_03

Welcome to season two of Wild and Kind Kids, y'all. And if you're part of our Wild and Kind Kids Club, your first week of activities should be in your inbox. And if you haven't signed up yet, there's still time. You can do so at wildandkindkids.com. But right now, we're going to solve a mystery without using our eyes. Ready? Okay. I want you to close your eyes. Close your eyes. No peeking. No peeking, Eliza. Okay, now reach out and touch something nearby. Don't peek. Can you figure out what it is just by touch? Does it feel smooth? Bumpy? Does it move? Okay. When you're ready, shout it out. What do you think it was?

SPEAKER_01

I think it was this apple cup because it when I moved my finger across it, it had these big bumps, and that's how my apple cup felt. I thought it was a marker and a fire truck a toy fire truck.

SPEAKER_03

Nice! You guys can open your eyes now. Even when your eyes were closed, your brain was collecting clues. And today's animal is amazing at collecting clues through touch. In fact, each of its many arms can help explore the world around it. Let's get learning. I'm Carrie, and I grew up on a zoo.

SPEAKER_01

I'm Lincoln. I'm Eliza. And we're the wild about animals.

SPEAKER_03

Welcome to the Wild and Kind Kids Podcast. Hi, Lincoln and Eliza. Hi. So today's animal was requested by Lulu, who is seven years old and thinks these animals are super cool.

unknown

Hi Lulu.

SPEAKER_03

So listeners, are you ready for three clues? Clue number one, today's animal lives in the ocean. Clue number two, scientists think it is one of the smartest animals in the ocean. And clue number three, it has eight arms. What is it?

SPEAKER_01

The octopus.

SPEAKER_03

Yes, the day octopus to be exact. The day octopus lives in warm, shallow ocean waters near coral reefs and rocky coastlines between Hawaii and East Africa. There, as you might have guessed from the name, they hunt for crabs, clams, and fish during the day. And it's actually pretty rare for an octopus to hunt during the day. The day octopus is usually brown or reddish brown with dark blue circles. It has eight strong arms lined with rows of suckers that stretch out from its soft body. And here's something amazing. The day octopus has no bones at all. The only hard part of its body is a sharp beak that's hidden where its arms meet. The octopus uses that beak to crunch and bite its food. That boneless body is why people often call them escape artists, because they can squeeze in and out of all sorts of tiny spaces. Lincoln and Eliza, what else can you tell us about the day octopus?

SPEAKER_01

Do you know that they taste with their arms?

SPEAKER_03

Yes. And here's a fun fact to impress your friends, y'all. Octopuses don't actually have tentacles. They have arms. Tentacles usually have suckers only near the end, but octopus arms have suckers running all the way down. Those suckers can also sense chemicals in the water, a lot like tasting. So imagine you're a day octopus exploring a coral reef. You reach out your arm and you touch a rock. Hmm, just a rock. Then you reach out and touch a shell. Nope, not food. Then you feel around a little more and aha, a crab. Before the octopus even takes a bite, its arms are already helping it gather clues about the world around it, just like we did at the start of the episode. And okay, it gets even cooler. An octopus has a huge number of neurons. Those are special cells that help animals think and sense things. In fact, more than half of their neurons are in their arms. That makes their arms incredibly sensitive, so they can explore underwater in amazing ways. Okay, y'all, what else?

SPEAKER_02

They make octopus gardens.

SPEAKER_03

Yes, those arms aren't just for feeling, they are also for collecting. Scientists have found octopuses collecting shells, rocks, and other treasures all around their homes. They sometimes pile these objects outside their dens, creating what people call octopus gardens. It's like decorating your front yard, you know, except underwater. Alright, how about another fact?

SPEAKER_01

They have an underwater squirt bomb. It's crazy. They can squirt ink at predators. It's true.

SPEAKER_03

When a day octopus senses danger, it can release a cloud of dark ink into the water. That dark cloud makes it harder for predators to see where the octopus went. But that is not all. That ink also contains special chemicals that can confuse a predator's senses and make it harder for them to actually track the octopus. So while the predator is busy dealing with that ink cloud, whoosh, the octopus can jet away to safety. Okay, one more fact. They can walk with their arms, which sounds totally crazy. I know. Who knew that arms could be so cool? So scientists have observed day octopuses literally walking across the ocean floor. So they use a few of their back arms, a bit like legs, to help move them forward, while their front arms are helping them balance and explore where they're going. So one way to think about this, like if you stood up and got on your tiptoes, now take a few slow steps forward while holding your arms out for balance. That's kind of what a day octopus looks like as it tiptoes, except using arms, across the sandy bottom of the ocean. All right, y'all. I think it's time to meet one up close. In our story of the day. Today, we're traveling to the warm blue waters off the Kona Coast of Hawaii. There, coral reefs burst with color and movement. Bright yellow fish dart between coral that twists and bends into tree like structures and fans. Sea turtles glide slowly through the water. Tiny shrimp hide in rocky cracks, popping in and out, in and out. This is the home of Ollie the Octopus. At least the creatures of the reef think it's the home of Ollie the Octopus. No one can be quite sure. Certainly, they have seen evidence that Ollie lives there. A pile of fresh crabshells appear outside a rocky den. A collection of shiny, misshapen seashells grows larger every week. Someone keeps rearranging pebbles into neat little piles. One day, a mysterious bottle cap appears. No one knows where it came from. No one knows why it's there. But somehow it keeps getting moved to a more important looking spot, like it's very fancy treasure. That's octopus behavior, they know. They just don't know where the octopus is. Kiko, a bright yellow fish, swears she once saw Ollie.

SPEAKER_01

Really?

SPEAKER_03

The other fish asked.

SPEAKER_01

Oh yes, said Kiko. What did he look like?

SPEAKER_03

Well um Kiko scratched her fin.

SPEAKER_01

I don't totally remember.

SPEAKER_03

The other fish groaned.

SPEAKER_01

But I know it was him.

SPEAKER_03

Sure you do. Said Samson, a green sea turtle. And that, dear listeners, is how it went every day when it came to Ollie. A whispered wondering or a flash of movement in the corner of someone's eye. There were lots of theories, but very little proof. But we know something the reef animals don't. Ollie is very real. In fact, at that very moment, Ollie was listening to every word from behind a rock. A rock that looked remarkably octopus shaped. Because Ollie had a secret. He could disappear almost anywhere. He could hide amongst the rocks. He wasn't hiding because he wanted to fool everyone. He was hiding because he was shy. Very, very shy. Since the first days he could remember, Ollie had worried nonstop about meeting other animals.

SPEAKER_02

What if they don't like me? What if I make a silly noise I can't take back? What if they think I'm strange? What if they notice my eight arms? Oh, they will definitely notice that.

SPEAKER_03

The thought made Ollie's stomach feel all squiggly. So he practiced until he became an expert at disappearing. Whenever another animal came near, poof! He would immediately take the shape and color of a nearby rock. Once, Samson swam past the reef and saw something moving near the rocks. Good morning, he called, but after a blink, there was only a rock.

SPEAKER_00

Oops, uh sorry, good morning, rock.

SPEAKER_03

The next day, Kiko the Yellow Fish swam by. Hello, Ollie, she called at a shadow by the reef, but suddenly there was only coral. She could have sworn she saw a shadow. But only coral. Just beyond Ollie's reef was something that he thought about every single day. A wide stretch of bright white sand. And on the other side of that sand was another reef. He'd heard other animals whispering about it as he lurked nearby in the shape of a lava rock. They said it was a wonderful reef full of colorful shells, crabs, and interesting caves with endless nooks and crannies to explore. And Ollie desperately wanted to explore it. But there was one problem. To get there, he would have to cross the sandflats, a large empty stretch of sand between the two reefs. There was nowhere to hide. No rocks, no coral, no seaweed, no places to blend in. Every morning Ollie peeked out of his den, looked at the sand, and tried to gather up some courage. And every morning he then whispered Maybe tomorrow. And then immediately turned himself back into a rock. One morning, Ollie was sitting quietly in his den when he overheard a conversation. Tina, a triggerfish, was talking to Samson the sea turtle. I don't like crossing the sand, said Tina, wiggling her fins. It makes me nervous. Ollie's eyes widened. The triggerfish got nervous? Then Samson nodded.

SPEAKER_00

Me too. It's just so open and big. I worry I might just get swept away from our reef.

SPEAKER_03

Now Ollie's eyes widened even more. The sea turtle got nervous? Just then Kiko swam over.

SPEAKER_01

I get nervous swimming anywhere without my school, she admitted. What if I get lost? And swept in the current and go all the way to Antarctica.

SPEAKER_03

The triggerfish nodded. The turtle nodded. They could relate, even if they weren't totally sure what Antarctica was. From behind his rock, Ollie nodded too. Wait, everybody got nervous sometimes? The animals kept talking, and Ollie kept listening. We should go tomorrow, said the sea turtle, with a very rare burst of bravery. We should agreed Kiko. But I don't want to cross by myself, said the triggerfish. Before Ollie could stop himself, the words slipped out.

SPEAKER_02

I want to go too.

SPEAKER_03

Samson froze. Tina froze. Kiko froze. Even the tiny shrimp stopped popping in and out of their rocky crack. Slowly, everyone turned toward a pile of rocks.

SPEAKER_01

Then that rock just talked.

SPEAKER_03

Ollie's stomach dropped. This was it. His worst nightmare. Everyone was staring. He couldn't disappear now. He couldn't hide. Slowly, very slowly, the rock became less rocky. Then even less rocky. Two curious eyes appeared, then one arm, then another, then another. And then in front of everyone was a very nervous octopus. Nobody said a word. Ollie's heart pounded. It was happening. They thought he was strange. They clearly didn't like him.

SPEAKER_01

Maybe You're real, I knew it!

SPEAKER_03

Kiko yelled, spinning excited circles through the water. I told everyone. The turtle groaned.

SPEAKER_00

I guess I owe you three sea cucumbers now.

SPEAKER_03

The triggerfish laughed. Even Ollie laughed a little, and the knot in his stomach loosened. You're Ollie? Ollie nodded.

SPEAKER_00

We've been trying to meet you for months.

SPEAKER_03

Really? asked Ollie. Of course, said the triggerfish. We were beginning to think you were a very clever ghost. The animals laughed. Even the sea turtle, which was unusual. Then Samson smiled.

SPEAKER_00

Well, Ollie, would you like to come with us tomorrow?

SPEAKER_03

Ollie looked toward the far reef, then toward the sand, then back at his new friends. His stomach still felt squiggly. But maybe maybe not quite as squiggly as before. I think so. The next morning the group gathered at the edge of the sand. Ollie's heart pounded. Every part of him wanted to disappear, to become a rock or coral or seaweed or literally anything else. But his friends waited. Together they moved forward. The turtle first, then the trigger fish, with the yellow fish close behind. And then Ollie. One arm forward, then another, then another. Like a nervous pile of moving noodles. But the farther they went, the braver Ollie felt, moving together with his new friends. And before long, they reached the far reef. It was even better than he imagined. There were shells, crabs, tiny caves, new places to explore, and best of all, friends to share it with. Months later, Ollie's garden continued to grow. The shell collection got bigger and now included shells from parts of the reef he'd only dreamed of. The mysterious bottle cap was still there, still moving all the time. But now visitors stopped by all the time, sometimes offering their own treasures for the pile. Ollie still felt nervous. Sometimes he still hid for a little while, but not for nearly as long. Because Ollie had learned something important with the help of his friends. Being brave doesn't mean you aren't scared. Being brave just means taking one arm forward anyway. Alright, friends. As always, today's story has a real science connection because the day octopus is a member of Nature's Hide and Seek Hall of Fame. Yes. Day octopuses are masters of disguise. Scientists have watched them change their color in just seconds to blend in with the world around them. A day octopus hiding near coral might become speckled. A day octopus resting on sand might become pale and sandy colored. But they don't just change their color, right? Right. They can also change the texture of their skin so they can make it look smoother or even bumpy like a rock. It's crazy. Does anyone know what we call it when an animal's shape or colors help it blend in with the area around it?

SPEAKER_01

Camouflage!

SPEAKER_03

Yes. Scientists think this camouflage helps the day octopus stay safe from predators. It also helps them sneak up on prey like crabs and shrimp. Now, unlike Ollie in our story, real day octopuses probably aren't hiding because they're worried about what other animals think of them. They're hiding because camouflage is one of the special adaptations that help them survive in the wild.

SPEAKER_01

Now it's time for your wild and kind mission.

SPEAKER_03

Don't let it flow. Help reefs grow. The day octopus is often found in coral reefs. These amazing ecosystems grow in sunny, warm ocean waters, and they are home to all sorts of creatures, from colorful fish and eels to sea turtles and octopuses. Coral reefs provide food, shelter, and hunting grounds for thousands of animals. In fact, they cover just 1% of the ocean, but about 25% of all ocean animals depend on them at some point in their lives. But coral reefs are in trouble. Scientists estimate that about half of the world's coral reefs have already been lost or damaged. Oh no! I know. Pollution can hurt coral reefs and the animals that live there. So here's your mission.

SPEAKER_01

Turn off the water while you brush your teeth. We do that.

SPEAKER_03

Saving water helps us use our planet's precious resources wisely. And it can also reduce pollution that ends up in rivers and oceans. Every drop you save is a small way to help care for our planet.

SPEAKER_01

Don't let it flow, help leaves grow. Before we go, it's time for wild and kind trivia.

SPEAKER_03

This is a new addition to Wild and Kind. We're going to close out with a trivia question about an animal we haven't covered yet. Ready? I can jump as long as a car. I have a tail that helps me balance. Even though my name says Lion, I don't have a mane. Who am I? Talk it over with your family and tune in next time to hear the answer. See you then, Wild and Kind Kids. This podcast is produced by John, also known as Lincoln and Eliza's dad. If you are enjoying these adventures, please subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts. Leave us a review and tell your friends. To find a coloring sheet for today's creature. Explore more episodes or request an animal for a future story. Visit Wildandkindkids.com. You can also find us on Instagram at Wild and Kind Kids Pod. Thanks for exploring with us, friends. Until next time.

SPEAKER_01

And your curiosity wild.