WILL IT INK?! - Catching an Octopus

- Wait a second, there's something big down there. Seriously, it's out there, right there, it's moving. He's passing by here. Got it, yeah, woo hoo! (dramatic music) Huge rock formations towered like prehistoric giants as intense waves crashed against the jagged outcrops. At high tide, the southern coast of Africa is an unforgiving landscape that has been carved over millions of years. However, when the tide recedes, the violence of the turbulent water recedes, leaving behind an intricate catacomb of intertidal pools teeming with aquatic life. Today we

will

explore a stretch of pristine coastline known as Kenton on Sea, the magical place where the South Atlantic meets the Indian Ocean.

And to say the least, it's incredibly beautiful. The sand was pristine, the water waves were warm, and with a little luck we would encounter and get up close to a variety of strange tide pool creatures. Now the tide is going out at this point. It seems like it's still coming but it's actually the best time to look for animals. When all the rocks are still saturated, it means the animals are still comfortable, giving us the best chance of

catching

them. The water trapped within the individual pools was crystal clear, so as I explored from pocket to pocket, I carefully scanned the hanging ledges and dark corners.

If ever there was a place too high for a sea beast, I was determined to be the seeker. We have a decent sized crab here in this little rock pool. In fact, there is also a small blenny next to it, which is a little fish that often sits on the edges of these small cliffs. It's tempting not to opt for both at the same time. We'll see what happens. I'm really after the crab though. I'm going to use this net because it's a deep pocket of water. (light music) Oh, I got it, yeah! What a scoop!

I almost got the blenny at the same time. Alright, that's a pretty decent sized little crab! Look to you! Look at those distinctive striped markings on the legs. In fact, I'll have to look this up in a field guide. I'm not sure exactly what species it is. Let me keep it on the grid like this just for a second. Uh oh! He's gone. - Okay, and I lost it! Wait. Oh, I have a blenny! Two of them. Okay, game! Very good, me. - I lost a crab, I got a blenny. - Oh, there's the crab, I got it!

Now I have the crab and some blennies. Wow! Wait, that's how he escaped the first time. Look at that, how's that for cleaning up your mess? Alright, this is really going well for us. Look at these guys. Come here friend. I have two of them in one scoop! Alright, let me keep the crab under the net, it

will

be fine. They can breathe out of water. Check it out! Those are blennies! They are great. They almost look like mudskippers or eel-type fish. Notice that the elongated body shape looks like a spine, and they have those long dorsal fins that run the length of their back.

They can actually breathe for a short time out of the water, so we don't have to worry about them just resting on my hand. And in fact, they can jump from one bag of water to another. What they will often do is exactly. Oh my god, there's an

octopus

. Nobody move. That's a huge

octopus

, okay. - Are you sure? - I am one hundred percent positive. I'm going to let the crab go. Alright, I'm going for the octopus guys. We are abandoning the crab. - I see it. - Nobody move. I can see its tentacle, Mario, if you crouch here maybe you can shoot it.

In fact, I'm wondering if I can use my GoPro. (dramatic music) It's wedged right into that little cavity. - I see it. - Yes. Well, this is what I'm going to do. I'll actually put my net in this area, try to reach my arm and scare it into the net. Now the good thing is that none of the octopus species here in South Africa are lethal to humans. Note that if we were in Australia and it was a blue-ringed octopus, it would not be performing this maneuver. Now, all octopuses are capable of biting, they are all poisonous, but I hope this one doesn't decide to give me a nic. (dramatic music) - Here it is, it's outside, it's there. - I see it, I see it.

Oh! Do you see him? -He is there, right there, he is moving. He is passing. You got it. - I have it, yes! Wow, how's that! Well the tactic worked, gently coax him from one pocket to the next and there you have it. We have an octopus. Wow, I'll actually let him out of the net and onto my arm. I hope he doesn't get a bite. Here we go friend. Now they do have a little beak at the bottom with which of course they could bite me, but the venom of this species is not lethal. This is the common octopus.

They may be bigger than this, but to be honest with you, this is the largest octopus I have ever caught and it is on the move. Wow, look at him just showing us his valves. Well, I'm trying to keep it as calm as I can. I don't want it to be inked. Look how it's turning dark in color, but if I do this, look at this. Put him down and try to corral him into this group, what he wants to feel is that he is protected. Look at that color change. In a matter of seconds it completely changes the shape of its body and its coloring.

Do you have a good chance there? This is really cool, you can see it pump water through the valves on the side of its head. If I leave it like this it will feel more comfortable. They want to feel hidden, wow, look at that. And they want to feel hidden. And like I have to handle a snake, I want to go from one hand to the other. Octopuses have eight tentacles and one of the most interesting things about these creatures is that if they lose a tentacle they can rejuvenate it. Wow, that's as cool as a big slimy bug!

Okay, I'm going to put it back in this bag of water. There we will keep it in position and right now I am taking a full bath. Alright, if I keep my hand in that position, notice the way it's actually going to slide. I guess it will go over my arm, I thought it would go under my arm. And when the tide goes out, if these animals get trapped in a shallow pool, they can do this: slide from one pocket of water to another. That's so cool. Now, one of the key defense tactics of all octopuses, plural octopuses, is that they can actually expel ink and that allows them to disappear into a rock crevice or return to the ocean waters.

Now, if the octopus needs to, it can stay out of the water for a significant period of time. The only reason you would find an octopus out of the water is if it moves from one tide pool to another. As the tide recedes, the octopus, if not in a deep enough pocket, will often attempt to return to the ocean currents. Check it out. Well how cool was this, exploring the tide pools of South Africa and managed to come across a slimy, slippery octopus. Oh! I'm Coyote Peterson, be brave, stay wild. See you on the next adventure.

Alright, buddy, time to get back in your pocket. Alright buddy, get back to your tidal pool. While returning the octopus to its watery kingdom, we witnessed an incredible sight, the octopus' most classic defense maneuver: the inkjet. Wow, I just tattooed it. And as it disappeared among the cavernous rocks, I realized that never before had a single pool of ocean water provided us with so many species. This isolated miniature biome was a veritable goldmine of strange aquatic creatures. And I felt incredibly lucky to have gotten so many of them on camera. However, we didn't know that the adventure was not completely over.

As we walked back to the production vehicles, we stumbled upon the one creature I had always dreamed of finding in a tide pool. Oh my god, a shark! - Oh my God, a shark. - It's okay Mario. If you thought finding and

catching

a slimy octopus was cool, be sure to check out the epic conclusion to our South African tide pool adventure, where I caught a shark with my bare hands. And don't forget to subscribe so you can join me and the crew on our next low tide adventure. (clamorous)