Sunday, 15 November 2015

Octopus Gets Mental Workout with Hamster Ball


by Tia Ghose, Senior Writer   |   November 10, 2015 02:18pm ET

Humans aren't the only species that need a mental workout. It turns out that octopuses need to flex their eight-limbed brain cells, too.

An amazing new video shows an octopus at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco solving a puzzle to get at tasty shrimp inside a hamster ball. This type of mental stimulation keeps the well-armed creatures from becoming depressed.

"Octopuses in general are highly intelligent and naturally inquisitive animals," said Patrick Lee, a biologist and husbandry manager at the California Academy of Sciences, who helps keep the creatures' minds sharp with a variety of exercises. "In the wild, they use this intelligence and their curiosity to help them solve problems and to look for food. Being in captivity, things can get a little bit boring at times."


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