Editing Grimpoteuthis

{{short description|Genus of cephalopods known as the dumbo octopuses}}
{{use dmy dates|date=September 2024}}
{{cs1 config|name-list-style=vanc }}
{{Automatic taxobox
| image = Dumbo-hires (cropped).jpg
| taxon = Grimpoteuthis
| authority = [[Guy Coburn Robson|Robson]], 1932
| type_species = ''[[Grimpoteuthis discoveryi]]''
| type_species_authority = Collins, (2003)
| subdivision_ranks = Species
| subdivision = 17, see text
| synonyms = Enigmatiteuthis
| synonyms_ref = <small>O'Shea (1999)</small>
}}

'''''Grimpoteuthis'''''<ref name=Voss-Prcy-1990>
{{Cite journal |last1=Voss |first1=Gilbert L. |last2=Pearcy |first2=William G. |date=17 October 1990 |title=Deep-water octopods (Mollusca: Cephalopoda) of the northeastern Pacific |url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/53708 |journal=[[Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences]] |series=4th&nbsp;series |publisher=[[California Academy of Sciences]] |publication-date=1990–1992 |volume=47 |pages=47–94 |via=biodiversitylibrary.org |number=3 |place=San Francisco, CA}}
</ref> is a genus of [[pelagic]] [[Cirrina|cirrate (finned) octopods]] known as the '''dumbo octopus'''.<ref name=MarineBio-558/> The name "dumbo" originates from their resemblance to the title character of [[Disney]]'s 1941 film ''[[Dumbo]]'', having two prominent ear-like fins which extend from the [[Mantle (mollusc)|mantle]] above each eye. There are 17&nbsp;species recognized in the genus.
<ref>{{Cite web |year=2022 |title=''Grimpoteuthis'' {{small|(Robson, 1932)}} |url=https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=138293 |website=World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) |via=marinespecies.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Young |first=Richard |title=Grimpoteuthis |url=http://tolweb.org/Grimpoteuthis |access-date=10 May 2014 |website=[[Tree of Life Web Project]] (tolweb.org)}}</ref>
The Dumbo octopus has a gelatinous body and uses fin propulsion for movement, which also helps it to conserve energy in its extreme deep-sea environment. These unique physical traits distinguish it from other octopuses, which primarily rely on jet propulsion.<ref name="Zglr-Sgrny-2021"/>
Prey include [[crustaceans]], [[bivalves]], worms and [[copepods]].<ref name="MarineBio-558">{{Cite web |title=Finned deep-sea octopuses |url=http://marinebio.org/species.asp?id=558 |access-date=8 May 2014 |website=MarineBio.org}}</ref> The average life span of various ''Grimpoteuthis'' species is 3 to 5&nbsp;years.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Roberts |first=Emily |date=October 8, 2018 |title=A Deep Dive with the Dumbo Octopus - Ocean Conservancy |url=https://oceanconservancy.org/blog/2018/10/08/everything-need-know-dumbo-octopus/#:~:text=The%20average%20life%20expectancy%20of%20the%20dumbo%20octopus%20is%20three%20to%20five%20years. |access-date=November 8, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Fazal |first=Rehman |date=29 September 2024 |title=A Deep Dive with the Dumbo Octopus,All About Dumbo Octopus |url=https://oceanfauna.net/dumbo-octopus/ |access-date=29 September 2024 |website=Ocean Fauna}}{{dead link|date=November 2024}}</ref> 

==Range and habitat==
[[File:Grimpoteuthis 2108m.jpg|thumb|Grimpoteuthis {{gaps|2|108|m}} off [[Guyana]].]]
Species of ''Grimpoteuthis'' are assumed to have a worldwide distribution, living in the cold, [[Abyssal plain|abyssal]] depths ranging from {{convert|1000|-|7000|m}}. Specimens have been found off the coasts of [[Oregon]], the [[Philippines]], [[Martha's Vineyard]], the [[Azores]], [[New Zealand]], [[Australia]], [[California]], [[New Guinea|Papua]] and [[New Guinea]], and in the [[Gulf of Mexico]].

{A fairly recent observation was on 21&nbsp;June 2022 at {{convert|1250|m}} by the vessel ''Normand Ocean'', which inspects [[drilling platform]]s with underwater drones; the vessel was examining chains and risers on the Aasta Hansteen platform outside [[Trøndelag]], [[Norway]]. Another recent observation {{as of|2023|lc=y}} was on 24&nbsp;May 2023 at {{gaps|2|108|meters,}} this time in [[Guyana]] by the vessel ''[[:fr:Far Samson|Far Samson]]'', which also uses underwater drones.

Further to this, the most recent known recorded observation was on 5th March 2025 by the Vessel "Boka Falcon" with a Workclass Remotely Operated Vehicle working at a depth of 960m in the Gulf Of Guinea approximately 65km South West of Abidjan, Ivory Coast. Two separate sightings approximate 20 minutes apart were observed. 

Dumbo octopuses are the deepest living octopuses known, with some specimens captured or observed at [[hadal zone|hadal]] depths. One ''Grimpoteuthis'' specimen was captured {{convert|60|km}} southeast of [[Grand Cayman]] at {{convert|7279|m}}, but this depth is uncertain (as the specimen may have been captured while the net was descending to this depth).<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Brunt |first1=M. A. |title=The Cayman Islands: Natural history and biogeography |last2=Davies |first2=J. E. |publisher=Kluwer Academic |year=1994 |isbn=0-7923-2462-5 |location=Dordrecht, NL |page=175}}</ref>

In 2020, ''Grimpoteuthis'' was spotted {{convert|6957|m}} deep in the [[Java Trench]], confirming the [[hadal zone|hadal]] distribution of this genus.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Jamieson |first1=Alan J. |last2=Vecchione |first2=Michael |date=26 May 2020 |title=First in situ observation of Cephalopoda at hadal depths (Octopoda: Opisthoteuthidae: ''Grimpoteuthis''&nbsp;sp.) |journal=Marine Biology |volume=167 |issue=6 |at=article&nbsp;82 |doi=10.1007/s00227-020-03701-1 |doi-access=free|bibcode=2020MarBi.167...82J }}</ref>

== Species and taxonomy ==
As noted below, many species collected on the [[Challenger expedition|''Challenger'' expedition]] were initially classified in the genera ''[[Cirroteuthis]]'' and ''[[Stauroteuthis]].''<ref name=Hoyle-1886/><ref name=Hoyle-1904/> Several species formerly classified as ''Grimpoteuthis'' were later moved to genera ''[[Cirroctopus]]'' and ''[[Opisthoteuthis]]''.<ref name=Collins-2003/> A new family, Grimpoteuthididae (alternatively spelled [[Grimpoteuthidae]]), has been proposed to accommodate ''Grimpoteuthis'' and those of genera ''Enigmatiteuthis'', ''[[Cryptoteuthis]]'', and ''[[Luteuthis]]''.<ref name=OShea-1999/><ref name="Prtny-Hudlt-etal-2003">{{Cite journal |last1=Piertney |first1=Stuart B. |last2=Hudelot |first2=Cendrine |last3=Hochberg |first3=F.G. |last4=Collins |first4=Martin A. |year=2003 |title=Phylogenetic relationships among cirrate octopods (Mollusca: Cephalopoda) resolved using mitochondrial 16S ribosomal DNA sequences |journal=Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution |volume=27 |issue=2 |pages=348–353 |doi=10.1016/S1055-7903(02)00420-7 |pmid=12695097|bibcode=2003MolPE..27..348P }}</ref><ref name=Collns-Vllnva-2006/> The persistent confusion and disparity about the taxonomy of these species has been attributed to the poor quality and limited number of specimens available for study.<ref name=Prtny-Hudlt-etal-2003/>

{{clear}}
:{| class="wikitable sortable"
|- style = "vertical-align:bottom;"
!width=100pt| Species name
!width=100pt| Reference
!width=190pt| Geographic range
! Depth&nbsp;range<br>(meters)
!width=190pt class="unsortable"| Taxonomic notes
|-
| ''[[Grimpoteuthis abyssicola]]''
| {{harvp|O'Shea|1999}}<ref name="OShea-1999">{{Cite report |url=https://researchers.mq.edu.au/en/publications/the-marine-fauna-of-new-zealand-octopoda-mollusca-cephalopoda |title=The marine fauna of New Zealand: Octopoda (Mollusca: Cepahlopoda) |last=O'Shea |first=Steve |publisher=NIWA Research |place=Wellington, NZ |volume=112 |pages=5–278 |via=researchers.mq.edu.au |year=1999 |journal=Niwa Biodiversity Memoirs}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last1=O'Shea |first1=Steve |last2=Young |first2=Richard E. |year=2003 |title=''Grimpoteuthis abyssicola'' |url=http://tolweb.org/Grimpoteuthis_abyssicola/20117 |access-date=2020-02-27 |website=[[Tree of Life Web Project]] (tolweb.org) |id={{nobr|TOL ID 20117}}}}</ref><ref name=Vrhf-OShea-2022/>
| Tasman Sea (off New Zealand and southeastern Australia)
|align="right"| {{gaps|2|821}}–{{gaps|3|180|m}}
| Known from two specimens.<ref name=Vrhf-OShea-2022/>
|-
| ''[[Grimpoteuthis angularis]]''
| {{harvp|Verhoeff|O'Shea|2022}}<ref name="Vrhf-OShea-2022">{{Cite journal |last1=Verhoeff |first1=Tristan J. |last2=O'Shea |first2=Steve |year=2022 |title=New records and two new species of ''Grimpoteuthis'' (Octopoda: Cirrata: Grimpoteuthididae) from southern Australia and New Zealand |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13235818.2022.2035889 |journal=Molluscan Research |volume=42 |issue=1 |pages=4–30 |doi=10.1080/13235818.2022.2035889 |bibcode=2022MollR..42....4V |s2cid=247020706|url-access=subscription }}</ref>
| (off New Zealand)
|align="right"| 628&nbsp;m
| Known from a single specimen. Internal shell form distinct from others in genus.<ref name=Vrhf-OShea-2022/>
|-
| ''[[Grimpoteuthis bathynectes]]''
| {{harvp|Voss|Pearcy|1990}}<ref name=Voss-Prcy-1990/><ref>{{Cite web |last1=Young |first1=Richard E. |last2=Vecchione |first2=Michael |year=2003 |title=''Grimpoteuthis bathynectes'' |url=http://tolweb.org/Grimpoteuthis_bathynectes/20118 |access-date=2020-02-27 |website=[[Tree of Life Web Project]] (tolweb.org) |id={{nobr|TOL ID 20118}}}}</ref>
| North Pacific (Tufts and Cascadia abyssal Plains, off Oregon)
|align="right"| {{gaps|3|932|m}}
|
|-
|''[[Grimpoteuthis boylei]]''
| {{harvp|Collins|2003}}<ref name="Collins-2003">{{Cite journal |last=Collins |first=M.A. |date=9 September 2003 |title=The genus Grimpoteuthis (Octopoda: Grimpoteuthidae) in the north-east Atlantic, with descriptions of three new species |journal=[[Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society]] |volume=139 |pages=93–127 |doi=10.1046/j.1096-3642.2003.00074.x |doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last1=Collins |first1=Martin |last2=Vecchione |first2=Michael |last3=Young |first3=Richard E. |year=2003 |title=''Grimpoteuthis boylei'' |url=http://tolweb.org/Grimpoteuthis_boylei/20119 |access-date=2020-02-28 |website=[[Tree of Life Web Project]] (tolweb.org) |id={{nobr|TOL ID 20119}}}}</ref>
| Northeast Atlantic ([[Porcupine Abyssal Plain|Porcupine]] and [[Madeira Abyssal Plain|Madeira]] abyssal plains)
|align="right"| {{gaps|4|845}}–{{gaps|4|847|m}}
|
|-
| ''[[Grimpoteuthis challengeri]]''
| {{harvp|Collins|2003}}<ref name=Collins-2003/><ref>{{Cite web |last1=Collins |first1=Martin |last2=Vecchione |first2=Michael |last3=Young |first3=Richard E. |year=2003 |title=''Grimpoteuthis challengeri'' |url=http://tolweb.org/Grimpoteuthis_challengeri/20120 |access-date=2020-02-28 |website=[[Tree of Life Web Project]] (tolweb.org) |id={{nobr|TOL ID 20120}}}}</ref>
| Northeast Atlantic (Porcupine abyssal plain)
|align="right"| {{gaps|4|828}}–{{gaps|4|838|m}}
|
|-
| ''[[Grimpoteuthis discoveryi]]''
| {{harvp|Collins|2003}}<ref name=Collins-2003/><ref>{{Cite web |last1=Collins |first1=Martin |last2=Vecchione |first2=Michael |last3=Young |first3=Richard E. |year=2003 |title=''Grimpoteuthis discoveryi'' |url=http://tolweb.org/Grimpoteuthis_discoveryi/20121 |access-date=2020-02-28 |website=[[Tree of Life Web Project]] (tolweb.org) |id={{nobr|TOL ID 20121}}}}</ref>
| Northeast Atlantic
|align="right"| {{gaps|2|600}}–{{gaps|4|870|m}}
|
|-
|''[[Grimpoteuthis feitiana]]''
|Tang, Zheng & Zhang, 2025<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Tang |first=Yan |last2=Zheng |first2=Xiaodong |last3=Zhang |first3=Junlong |date=2025-04-21 |title=Flying in the deep: the description of a new species of Grimpoteuthis (Octopoda: Cirrata: Grimpoteuthidae) from the Caroline Seamount, with ecological adaptation of dumbo octopuses |url=https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13127-025-00678-x |journal=Organisms Diversity & Evolution |language=en |doi=10.1007/s13127-025-00678-x |issn=1618-1077|url-access=subscription }}</ref>
|Caroline Seamount,  western Pacific Ocean
|1240 m
|Known from one specimen
|-
| ''[[Grimpoteuthis greeni]]''
| {{harvp|Verhoeff|O'Shea|2022}}<ref name=Vrhf-OShea-2022/>
| Southern Australia
|align="right"| 480–{{gaps|1|993|m}}
| Known from three specimens.<ref name=Vrhf-OShea-2022/>
|-
| ''[[Grimpoteuthis hippocrepium]]''
| {{harvp|Hoyle|1904}}<ref name="Hoyle-1904">{{Cite journal |last=Hoyle |first=William E. |author-link=William Evans Hoyle |date=1904 |title=Reports on the Cephalopoda |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=f6XPAAAAMAAJ&q=stauroteuthis+hippocrepium&pg=PA5 |journal=[[Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology]] |volume=43 |issue=1 |pages=5–7}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last1=Young |first1=Richard E. |last2=Vecchione |first2=Michael |year=2003 |title=''Grimpoteuthis hippocrepium'' |url=http://tolweb.org/Grimpoteuthis_hippocrepium/20122 |access-date=2020-02-28 |website=[[Tree of Life Web Project]] (tolweb.org) |id={{nobr|TOL ID 20122}}}}</ref>
| East Pacific (off [[Malpelo Island]])
|align="right"| {{gaps|3|334|m}}
| Previously assigned to genus ''[[Stauroteuthis]]''; known from a single, "sadly mutilated" individual according to Hoyle.<ref name=Hoyle-1904/> The internal shell form is similar to ''G.&nbsp;abyssicola''.<ref name=Vrhf-OShea-2022/>
|-
| ''[[Grimpoteuthis imperator]]''
| {{harvp|Ziegler|Sagorny|2021}}<ref name="Zglr-Sgrny-2021">{{Cite journal |last1=Ziegler |first1=Alexander |last2=Sagorny |first2=Christina |date=2021-04-23 |title=Holistic description of new deep sea megafauna (Cephalopoda: Cirrata) using a minimally invasive approach |journal=[[BMC Biology]] |volume=19 |issue=1 |page=81 |doi=10.1186/s12915-021-01000-9 |issn=1741-7007 |pmc=8063452 |pmid=33888110 |doi-access=free}}</ref>
| [[Emperor Seamounts]], North Pacific
|align="right"| {{gaps|3|913}}–{{gaps|4|417|m}}
|Known from a single specimen.<ref name=Zglr-Sgrny-2021/>
|-
| ''[[Grimpoteuthis innominata]]''
| {{harvp|O'Shea|1999}}<ref name=OShea-1999/><ref>{{Cite web |last1=O'Shea |first1=Steve |last2=Young |first2=Richard E. |last3=Vecchione |first3=Michael |year=2003 |title=''Grimpoteuthis innominata'' |url=http://tolweb.org/Grimpoteuthis_innominata/20123 |access-date=2020-02-28 |website=[[Tree of Life Web Project]] (tolweb.org) |id={{nobr|TOL ID 20123}}}}</ref>
| South Pacific (east of New Zealand)
|align="right"| {{gaps|2|000|m}}
| Alternatively classified as ''Enigmatiteuthis''<ref name=OShea-1999/>
|-
| ''[[Grimpoteuthis meangensis]]''
| {{harvp|Hoyle|1886}}<ref name="Hoyle-1886">{{Cite book |last=Hoyle |first=William Evans |author-link=William Evans Hoyle |title=Report on the Cephalopoda collected by H.M.S. Challenger during the years 1873–1876 |publisher=Neill |year=1886 |location=Edinburgh, UK |pages=3, 230–233 |doi=10.5962/bhl.title.46542}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last1=Young |first1=Richard E. |last2=Vecchione |first2=Michael |year=2003 |title=''Grimpoteuthis meangensis'' |url=http://tolweb.org/Grimpoteuthis_meangensis/20124 |access-date=2020-02-28 |website=[[Tree of Life Web Project]] (tolweb.org) |id={{nobr|TOL ID 20124}}}}</ref>
| West Pacific (off Meangis Islands, near Philippines)
|align="right"| 925&nbsp;m
| Previously assigned to genera ''[[Cirroteuthis]]''<ref name=Hoyle-1886/> and ''[[Stauroteuthis]]''<ref name=Hoyle-1904/>
|-
|''[[Grimpoteuthis megaptera]]''
| [[Addison Emery Verrill|Verrill]] (1885)<ref name=Hoyle-1886/><ref>{{Cite web |last1=Young |first1=Richard E. |last2=Vecchione |first2=Michael |year=2003 |title=''Grimpoteuthis megaptera'' |url=http://tolweb.org/Grimpoteuthis_megaptera/20125 |access-date=2020-02-28 |website=[[Tree of Life Web Project]] (tolweb.org) |id={{nobr|TOL ID 20125}}}}</ref>
| Northwest Atlantic (southeast of [[Martha's Vineyard]])
|align="right"| {{gaps|4|600|m}}
| Previously assigned to genus ''[[Cirroteuthis]]''<ref name=Hoyle-1886/>
|-
| ''[[Grimpoteuthis pacifica]]''
| {{harvp|Hoyle|1886}}<ref name=Hoyle-1886/><ref>{{Cite web |last1=Young |first1=Richard E. |last2=Vecchione |first2=Michael |year=2003 |title=''Grimpoteuthis pacifica'' |url=http://tolweb.org/Grimpoteuthis_pacifica/20126 |access-date=2020-02-28 |website=[[Tree of Life Web Project]] (tolweb.org) |id={{nobr|TOL ID 20126}}}}</ref>
| South Pacific (off [[Papua New Guinea]])
|align="right"| {{gaps|4|500|m}}
| Previously assigned to genus ''[[Cirroteuthis]]''<ref name=Hoyle-1886/>
|-
| ''[[Grimpoteuthis plena]]''
| Verrill (1886)<ref name=Hoyle-1886/><ref>{{Cite web |last1=Young |first1=Richard E. |last2=Vecchione |first2=Michael |year=2003 |title=''Grimpoteuthis plena'' |url=http://tolweb.org/Grimpoteuthis_plena/20127 |access-date=2020-02-28 |website=[[Tree of Life Web Project]] (tolweb.org) |id={{nobr|TOL ID 20127}}}}</ref>
| Northwest Atlantic
|align="right"| {{gaps|2|000|m}}
| Previously assigned to genus ''[[Cirroteuthis]]''<ref name=Hoyle-1886/>
|-
| ''[[Grimpoteuthis tuftsi]]''
| {{harvp|Voss|Pearcy|1990}}<ref name=Voss-Prcy-1990/><ref>{{Cite web |last1=Young |first1=Richard E. |last2=Vecchione |first2=Michael |year=2003 |title=''Grimpoteuthis tuftsi'' |url=http://tolweb.org/Grimpoteuthis_tuftsi/20128 |access-date=2020-02-28 |website=[[Tree of Life Web Project]] (tolweb.org) |id={{nobr|TOL ID 20128}}}}</ref>
| North Pacific (Tufts and Cascadia abyssal plains off Oregon)
|align="right"| {{gaps|3|900|m}}
|
|-
| ''[[Grimpoteuthis umbellata]]''
| [[Paul Henri Fischer|Fischer]] (1883)<ref name=Hoyle-1886/><ref>{{Cite web |last1=Collins |first1=Martin |last2=Vecchione |first2=Michael |last3=Young |first3=Richard E. |year=2003 |title=''Grimpoteuthis umbellata'' |url=http://tolweb.org/Grimpoteuthis_umbellata/20129 |access-date=2020-02-28 |website=[[Tree of Life Web Project]] (tolweb.org)}}</ref>
| North Atlantic (off Morocco, [[Canary Islands]], and the [[Azores]]) 
|align="right"| {{gaps|2|235|m}}
| Previously assigned to genus ''[[Cirroteuthis]]''<ref name=Hoyle-1886/>
|-
| ''[[Grimpoteuthis wuelkeri]]''
| {{harvp|Grimpe|1920}}<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Grimpe |first=G. |author-link=Georg Grimpe |year=1920 |title=Teuthologische Mitteilungen v. Zwei neue Cirraten-Arten |trans-title=Teuthological communications [on] two new cirrate species |url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/9458582#page/239/mode/1up |journal=[[Zoologischer Anzeiger]] |volume=51 |pages=230–243 |via=biodiversitylibrary.org |lang=de}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last1=Collins |first1=Martin |last2=Vecchione |first2=Michael |last3=Young |first3=Richard E. |year=2003 |title=''Grimpoteuthis wuelkeri'' |url=http://tolweb.org/Grimpoteuthis_wuelkeri/20130 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210424205337/http://tolweb.org/Grimpoteuthis_wuelkeri/20130 |archive-date=2021-04-24 |access-date=2020-02-28 |website=[[Tree of Life Web Project]] (tolweb.org) |id={{nobr|TOL ID 20130}}}}</ref>
| Northeast and northwest Atlantic
|align="right"| {{gaps|2|055|m}}
|
|}

==Movement, characteristics, and food supply==
Observations of animals in the Atlantic reveal that ''Grimpoteuthis'' often rest on the seafloor with the arms and web spread out and uses its arms to slowly crawl along the seafloor. When disturbed, the webbing and arms are contracted to propel the animal off the seafloor and using the mantle fins for rapid locomotion.<ref name="Villnva-Sgnzc-Guerra-1997">{{Cite journal |last1=Villanueva |first1=R. |last2=Segonzac |first2=M. |last3=Guerra |first3=A. |date=July 1997 |title=Locomotion modes of deep-sea cirrate octopods (Cephalopoda) based on observations from video recordings on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge |journal=Marine Biology |volume=129 |issue=1 |pages=113–122 |doi=10.1007/s002270050152 |bibcode=1997MarBi.129..113V |s2cid=85848021}}</ref> 

The cushiony cartilage that can be found in the proximal position of the fin of ''Grimpoteuthis'' is responsible for acting as a support for the thick muscles that allow for rapid locomotion. 

Although it has been suggested that species of ''Grimpoteuthis'' are capable of [[Aquatic locomotion|jet-propulsion]] (while swimming using the fins), this has since been deemed unlikely.<ref name=Villnva-Sgnzc-Guerra-1997/> 

Feeding behavior has not been directly observed in ''Grimpoteuthis'', but presumably is similar to ''[[Opisthoteuthis]]'' which can trap small prey items in the webbing (either by enclosing the prey in the arm webbing or between the webbing and the seafloor) and then use the cirri (fingerlike projections along the arms) to move food to the mouth. Known prey items (from dissected animals) include benthic [[polychaetes]], [[benthopelagic]] [[copepods]], [[amphipods]] and [[isopods]].<ref name=Collns-Vllnva-2006/>

==Breeding==
The cirrate octopuses are classified as 'continuous spawners': Females carry multiple eggs in various stages of maturation, and only lay one or two eggs at a time, with no seasonality in spawning (however, most of these aspects of reproductive biology have only been confirmed in ''Opisthoteuthis'', not ''Grimpoteuthis''). Mating in cirrate octopuses has never been observed, and unlike other octopuses, members of Cirrata lack a [[hectocotylus]] for the transfer of sperm packets.<ref name=Collns-Vllnva-2006/>
Cirrate octopus eggs are large and have a tough casing surrounding the [[chorion]] (not found in other octopuses), and ''Grimpoteuthis'' in particular attach their eggs to deep sea corals ([[Octocorallia|octocorals]]).<ref name="Zglr-Millr-Naglmn-2021">{{Cite journal |last1=Ziegler |first1=Alexander |last2=Miller |first2=Abigail |last3=Nagelmann |first3=Nina |year=2021 |title=Novel insights into early life stages of finned octopods (Octopoda: Cirrata) |journal=[[Swiss Journal of Palaeontology]] |volume=140 |issue=1 |page=24 |doi=10.1186/s13358-021-00240-0 |s2cid=245330726 |doi-access=free|bibcode=2021SwJP..140...24Z }}</ref>

Unlike other octopuses, the female cirrate octopus does not guard or incubate the eggs.<ref name="Collns-Vllnva-2006" />
''Grimpoteuthis'' hatchlings emerge as "fully competent" juveniles with all of the sensory and motor features to survive on their own.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Shea |first1=Elizabeth K. |last2=Ziegler |first2=Alexander |last3=Faber |first3=Cornelius |last4=Shank |first4=Timothy M. |date=February 2018 |title=Dumbo octopod hatchling provides insight into early cirrate life cycle |journal=[[Current Biology]] |volume=28 |issue=4 |pages=R144–R145 |doi=10.1016/j.cub.2018.01.032 |pmid=29462576 |doi-access=free|bibcode=2018CBio...28.R144S }}</ref><ref name="Zglr-Millr-Naglmn-2021" />

[[Sexual dimorphism]] between males and females is less noticeable and consistent in ''Grimpoteuthis'' compared to other cirrate octopuses (such as ''Opisthoteuthis''). In some species (e.g., ''G.&nbsp;bathynectes''<ref name=Voss-Prcy-1990/> and ''G..&nbsp;discoveryi''),<ref name=Collins-2003/> the males have enlarged suckers relative to the females, but no such enlargement is found in other ''Grimpoteuthis'' species.<ref name=Collns-Vllnva-2006/>

== Threats ==
Species of ''Grimpoteuthis'' face few direct threats from humans largely due to living at depths of {{Convert|1000|meters|ft}} and below. Natural predators of cirrate octopuses include large [[teleost]] fish and sharks, and even marine mammals such as sperm whales and seals, but these are mostly predators of other cirrate genera''. Grimpoteuthis'' has only been recorded in the stomach contents of a shark.<ref name="Collns-Vllnva-2006">{{Cite journal |last1=Collins |first1=Martin A. |last2=Villanueva |first2=Roger |year=2006 |title=Taxonomy, ecology and behaviour of the cirrate octopods |journal=[[Oceanography and Marine Biology]] |series=Annual Review |volume=44 |pages=277–322 |doi=10.1201/9781420006391.ch6 |doi-broken-date=11 November 2024 |isbn=978-0-8493-7044-1}}</ref>

The ''Grimpoteuthis'' do not have an ink sac (as is the case with all cirrate octopuses). Furthermore, the cirrate octopuses lack innervated chromatophores and therefore are not capable of changing color<ref name=Collns-Vllnva-2006/> (despite some unreferenced statements to the contrary).<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Hadjisolomou |first=Stavros P. |date=March 2017 |title=SpotMetrics: An open-source image-analysis software plugin for automatic chromatophore detection and measurement |journal=[[Frontiers in Physiology]] |volume=8 |pages=106 |doi=10.3389/fphys.2017.00106 |pmc=5331055 |pmid=28298896 |doi-access=free}}</ref>
How cirrate octopuses escape or avoid predators is largely unknown.

==References==
{{reflist|25em}}

==External links==
{{wikiquote}}

* {{Cite AV media |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/life/Grimpoteuthis#p00hn4zc |title=Dumbo octopus |type=video |publisher=[[BBC Nature]] |website=bbc.co.uk}}

{{Taxonbar|from=Q2165446}}

[[Category:Octopuses]]
[[Category:Cephalopods of Oceania]]
[[Category:Molluscs of the Atlantic Ocean]]
[[Category:Molluscs of the Pacific Ocean]]