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You are here: Home / Animals / How Does an Octopus Swim?

How Does an Octopus Swim?

August 2, 2020 by Karen Hill

Although an octopus has eight arms, or tentacles, it does not use them for swimming. These tentacles are only for crawling along the ocean floor and for catching food.

In order to move through the water, the octopus draws water into a cavity in its body, then squirts it out in jets through a tube, or siphon, just under its head. The force of this squirting is so powerful that it moves the octopus swiftly backwards through the water, in an action similar to jet propulsion.

If one of an octopus’ tentacles is cut off, a new one grows in its place!

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  • Which Cephalopod can Swim Faster, a Squid or an Octopus, and How Fast?
  • Can rattlesnakes swim and can snakes swim underwater?
  • Why Does an Octopus Change Color?
  • Does an octopus's ink serve any purpose besides darkening the water for camouflage from predators?

Filed Under: Animals

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

Previous Post: « Which Animals Build Their Own Islands?
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