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Mimic octopuses

"it's standing up, it must be trying to be a lionfish!"
"It's laying down, it must be trying to be a stingray!"

Ooooff. This stuff just slays me.
 
As much as I am convinced (from other animals) that different species learn from each other, I have seen my Mercs take most of the supposed "mimic" poses and they have never seen any of the things that are supposed to be mimiced.
 
When I touch the glass Kalypso reaches out with two arms. One arm coming at me and one arm going another direction. Looks much like the supposed "banded sea snake" the mimic does, only she's blue/green so she doesn't have the advantage of being black and white banded like the sea snake.
 
...and might not have the other added bonus or being poisonous or venomous
 
I see mimic like behavior in my pets as well. Im not convinced they are trying to mimic or just taking on shapes that remind us of other animals.

heres my flounder..err I mean my cuttlefish
DSC01844.jpg
 
To add to the mix, is it just me or do your rocks disguise themselves as octos/cuttles? I know, that sounds rediculous but when you are hunting Mercs in a tank you look for eyes and arms and you start to realize that the natural shapes (shell edges can actually look JUST like octo arms with suckers, barnacles like a pair of eyes) and the critter shapes are really very similar. The "mimicing" may have more to do with taking on shapes of rockwork and substrate that HAPPEN to be the natural camoflage of what we think they are emulating.
 
dwhatley;115580 said:
To add to the mix, is it just me or do your rocks disguise themselves as octos/cuttles? I know, that sounds rediculous but when you are hunting Mercs in a tank you look for eyes and arms and you start to realize that the natural shapes (shell edges can actually look JUST like octo arms with suckers, barnacles like a pair of eyes) and the critter shapes are really very similar. The "mimicing" may have more to do with taking on shapes of rockwork and substrate that HAPPEN to be the natural camoflage of what we think they are emulating.

Hahahah, I know what you mean. Before I started seeing Kalypso on a regular basis I would see edges of rocks that were oval shaped with tiny round bumps that looked like a mantle and eyes. Turn the light on... and nothing but a rock.
 

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