Having knowledge of what is and isn't risky when you're in unknown territory is tricky, but there are certain clues you can watch out for, such as bright, teeth coloration, or the similarity to a bear on a ton of cocaine.
Footage that went viral lately on TikTok showed how simple it is to underrate little things, as someone was recorded carrying in their bare hands one of the most hazardous creatures in the world (surprisingly, it's not the first instance of this happening).
The Blue-Ringed Octopus
The blue-ringed octopus is the description of small but mighty, with a regular body size of 5 to 8 inches (12 to 20 centimeters). As its name implies, these little squishes are enclosed in a psychedelic pattern of blue rings - but these are only usually seen when the creature is aggravated.
When stressed, it becomes luminous yellow and glows its 60 to 50 blue rings in what's commonly accepted as an obvious 'back tf up' sign.
It's a simple instance of an aposematic signal display, a strategy utilized by a distinct range of creatures that lets potential predators know that this is not the food they want to feed on. The sensed danger could be connected to injected venom, ingested poison, difficult-to-swallow spines, or bitter taste.
Also Read: Octopus Ancestors Among the First Animals on Earth, Dating Back to 509 Million Years Ago!
The Dangerous Toxin
Another justification that is a bit sneakier is noticed in Batesian mimicry, in which an excellently palatable to prey creatures mimic an aposematic prototype so that predators would evade them too such as this "tarantula".
In the instance of the blue-ringed octopus, they're not playing around. They are one of the world's most high-risk creatures on earth, owing to the incredibly dangerous toxin they can curious hands with or envenomate attackers. It's named tetrodotoxin and it's a strong neurotoxin that can be lethal.
Luckily, these octopuses aren't hostile, if space is given to them and it is not disturbed unnecessarily, pull it out of the water and carry it around, you should be okay. Marine ecologist Erin Spencer wrote on a post regarding blue-ringed octopus for Ocean Conservancy.
The Bite is Quite Painless
Its bite is commonly painless, so you may not realize that you have been bitten until it's too late. Initially, the venom hurdles nerve warnings across the body, resulting in muscle numbness. Additional signs involve loss of motor functions, blindness, loss of senses, or vision loss and nausea.
Eventually, it will lead to muscle paralysis involving the muscles required for people to breathe, causing respiratory arrest. There is no accepted antidote, but patients can be saved if synthetic respiration is instantly connected and initiated on the victim.
The Footage
It seems that @kaylinmarie21 whose Tiktok bio says: "I held a poisonous octopus" was surprisingly lucky. In additional footage to the initial one detailing nail-biting wildlife clash, it seems that the TikTok user who held the Octopus is a female, they disclose that she was visiting the Uluwatu beach in Bali with several friends when they noticed not one but two blue-ringed octopuses.
But her first tape only reveals the one being handed all over, she said that they also pulled up the second one, the octopuses' rings can be observed quite visibly showing how the poisonous ticking time bomb was feeling during the period the picture was taken.
Related Article: Study: Octopuses Have a Strange Light Sense Helping Them Hide from Predators
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