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[water trickling]
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[narrator] Beneath the waves,
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lives a mysterious creature,
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older than the dinosaurs.
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Octopus!
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So incredibly alien.
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Changing color in an instant.
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Shapeshifting into almost anything.
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They are the planet's
true masters of disguise.
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Now we're discovering,
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they are one of the
most intelligent beings
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on the planet.
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Two years immersed in their world,
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reveals they use tools.
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I felt completely shocked at
the level of sophistication
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that I was witnessing.
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[narrator] Think creatively.
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Communicate with other species.
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And maybe even dream.
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I wonder sometimes if the
octopuses are dreaming about me,
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wondering what I am, who I am.
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[narrator] We're just
beginning to understand
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what they have to tell us.
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I have just had a
conversation with an octopus.
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[♪ theme music plays]
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[narrator] Deep beneath
the ocean's surface,
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a female giant Pacific octopus,
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guards her eggs inside a hidden cave.
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She won't leave them, even to eat.
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They need her protection.
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She's been caring for them
for over seven months.
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Slowly starving to death.
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Keeping her babies safe,
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will be the last thing she'll ever do.
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This tiny octopus, about the
size of a grain of rice,
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will head out into the world alone.
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Never knowing its mother or siblings.
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Octopuses are nature's ultimate loners.
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Or so, scientists thought.
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National Geographic Explorer
Dr. Alex Schnell
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has spent years studying
Animal Psychology.
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She believes octopuses are
more social than we realize.
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[Dr. Alex Schnell] When you
spend time with an octopus,
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you get the feeling that
they're as curious about you
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as you are about them.
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[narrator] Over many hours of
diving in Northern Australia,
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she's gained the trust
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of a shy female day octopus.
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[Dr. Alex Schnell] There was
a moment between us
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where she must have decided that
I wasn't a threat to her
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and let me follow her around.
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[narrator] Alex has even given her a name.
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[Dr. Alex Schnell] She'd had
a little scar below her eye
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and that's how I named her Scarlett.
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[narrator] Although she might accept Alex,
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octopuses like Scarlett are
usually wary of their own kind.
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[Dr. Alex Schnell] They're
essentially lone rangers.
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In fact, octopuses that bump
into each other
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will often either mate,
eat each other, or both.
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[narrator] So, when another
day octopus approaches Scarlett,
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Alex is concerned.
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[Dr. Alex Schnell] I was so nervous.
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Because you never know how these
things are gonna turn out.
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[narrator] They size each other up,
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both darken their skin color,
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often a sign of aggression.
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Scarlett needs to work out
what the intruder wants.
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And there's only one way to do that.
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[Dr. Alex Schnell] The really
strange thing about day octopuses
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is that they have to touch each other
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to figure out what the other one wants.
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[narrator] Scarlett uses her suckers,
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25 times more sensitive
than a human fingertip,
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to shake hands with the stranger.
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He's a male, looking for a mate.
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Scarlett's not interested.
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But he won't give up.
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Scarlett's in trouble.
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If he gets his arms tight around her,
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she could be suffocated.
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[♪ tense music]
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[Dr. Alex Schnell] It was such a
relief to watch her break free.
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[narrator] With social
interactions so dangerous,
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it's easy to see why an
octopus-like Scarlett
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would choose to be alone.
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But she seems perfectly
content to hang out with Alex.
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[Dr. Alex Schnell] I can form a
social bond with an octopus
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so, maybe this idea that they're
complete loners isn't true.
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[narrator] There's growing
evidence that octopuses are
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using their intelligence to
weigh up who to get close to.
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They're not anti-social, just discerning!
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Especially when it
comes to the opposite sex.
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To understand how octopuses choose
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who to spend their time with,
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we need to look at their dating habits.
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In Indonesia, the love life of one octopus
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is helping to rewrite the
rulebook on their relationships.
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[squirting]
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Trapped in his den by low tide,
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this male algae octopus
can't wait to be free.
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Because when the water rises,
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he goes looking for romance.
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Since he only comes out of
his den a few hours a day,
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he needs to fast-track it.
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Luckily, his zip code means mates aplenty.
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But all the local octopuses
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are making the most of high tide.
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It's octopus speed-dating!
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[♪ curious music]
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It's a social situation so unusual,
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marine biologist Dr. Christine Huffard
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has been studying it for two decades.
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[Dr. Christine Huffard] The algae octopus
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interact frequently, many times a day.
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But the more I watch the algae
octopus the more questions I have
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about what really drives
these social interactions.
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[narrator] Could this closely
packed arena be the reason
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algae octopuses break the mold
when it comes to socializing?
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The young male has spotted a female.
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But a more experienced striped
rival gets there first.
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His extended arm is an
open invitation to mate.
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Our young male is
prepared to fight for her.
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[♪ intense music]
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The males wrestle,
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each of their eight arms
moving independently,
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it's the ultimate showdown.
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[♪ anticipatory music]
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But it's more than just a physical fight,
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it's intelligence gathering.
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It learns its rank among the
other neighbors around it
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and what resources it
might be able to take.
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What it can get away with behaviorally.
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What it needs to fight for.
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[narrator] These octopuses
are not only living together,
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they're getting smarter because of it.
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It's social learning.
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And scientists didn't know
wild octopuses could do it.
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The young male is still
on his quest for love.
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But now, he's got a new strategy.
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Best to go for a female
who's not already taken.
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He starts the conversation.
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His tens of thousands of
color-changing skin cells,
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send a message.
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Scientists call this
"Passing Cloud display."
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[♪ magical music]
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Her reply looks promising.
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He moves in.
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[♪ tango music]
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[Dr. Christine Huffard]
He sticks up his papillae over his eye,
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which is a little finger-like,
fleshy projection.
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He looks as big as he can be.
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He's got a white background
with a big black stripe
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that says I will either
fight you or mate with you.
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[narrator] His come-on has done the trick.
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He extends his specialized mating arm.
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Its modified tip will
deliver a packet of sperm.
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If he can just find the right spot.
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Nope, still not it!
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But she's getting impatient and hungry.
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He's gotten this far, so if
she wants to go hunting,
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he'll hang on.
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Mating on the move.
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It's been a steep learning
curve for this little guy.
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But his decision to interact with others,
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whether fighting,
communicating, or mating,
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has made him smarter,
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and, more successful.
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But is the algae octopus a one-off?
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Christine thinks not.
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We might learn that there
are other social octopuses
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out there, that it's maybe not
as uncommon as we think.
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[narrator] Algae octopuses
are forced to interact,
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but there are places where octopuses
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choose to come together.
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Over 100 miles
off the coast of Costa Rica.
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And nearly two miles beneath
the surface of the ocean,
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in one of the most extreme
environments on Earth,
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a team of scientists made
a remarkable discovery.
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A brand-new species.
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Nicknamed the Dorado octopus,
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but so new to science,
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they're yet to be given an official name.
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And they didn't just find a few,
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they found over 100.
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Almost all are females,
caring for their eggs.
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This is one of only four
deep-sea octopus nurseries
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known to exist on our planet.
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What attracts so many moms-to-be
to this particular spot?
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A deep-sea spring,
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where warm water flows out of
cracks in the sea floor.
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Speeding up the development of their eggs.
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Being so close to each
other is a price worth paying.
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These moms will be down here
together, for almost two years,
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as their babies grow.
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Each tiny hatchling a symbol
of their mutual tolerance.
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Scientists believe more sites
like this remain undiscovered.
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There could be thousands
of octopus putting their differences aside
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to secure the next generation.
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But what happens when octopuses
of different species meet?
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[birds cawing]
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Dr. Alex Schnell has heard that underneath
this unassuming pier,
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something highly unusual is happening.
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The action happens at night.
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[splashing]
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[♪ mysterious music]
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[Dr. Alex Schnell] I only have
the tiny light from my torch
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to guide me.
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[bubbles]
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You have this eerie feeling
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as you're moving through the water.
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[♪ mysterious music]
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I noticed two little eyes popping out.
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And it's a pale octopus.
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She comes out, and
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we have this wonderful moment where
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her suckers touch my gloved hand.
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It felt like she was inviting
me to go on a swim with her.
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[narrator] The pale octopus
leads Alex to an up-cycled
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artificial reef created by divers.
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It may not look like much,
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but it offers octopuses
everything they need
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to feel at home.
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They are everywhere.
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Peeking back at Alex
from every cubby hole.
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But that's not the only thing
that caught Alex's attention.
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[Dr. Alex Schnell] Normally,
I'd see about one or two octopuses
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and they're usually of the same species.
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But down here you have
about 100 individuals,
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of five different species,
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and they're all just living together.
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From octopuses as small as a golf ball,
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to octopuses as big as a beach ball.
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That is an extraordinary
octopus oasis down there,
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with several species co-existing.
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[narrator] Great real estate
may have attracted so many
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octopuses here.
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But it doesn't explain how
animals that would normally
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fight, even kill each other,
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are living harmoniously.
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[♪ curious music]
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I've got a theory that might help explain
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what we're seeing here.
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We've got five different species,
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with very different personalities.
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The Maori, one of the largest
species in the world,
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is quite shy.
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And then a really tiny octopus,
the Southern Keeled,
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has a lot of sass.
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It's a perfect mix of personalities
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for them all to co-exist.
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[narrator] So perhaps, just like us,
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sometimes it's their differences
that allow them to get along.
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In this thriving octopolis,
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they've learned to defy their instincts
255
00:25:21,895 --> 00:25:25,065
and live peacefully with their neighbors.
256
00:25:28,443 --> 00:25:32,572
[birds cawing]
257
00:25:37,160 --> 00:25:39,496
Octopuses are smart enough
to choose companionship
258
00:25:39,579 --> 00:25:42,123
when it counts,
259
00:25:45,293 --> 00:25:50,131
but are there any limits to
who they'll cooperate with?
260
00:25:57,764 --> 00:26:01,685
Alex's favorite loner, Scarlett,
261
00:26:01,768 --> 00:26:05,105
is out hunting on the reef.
262
00:26:08,108 --> 00:26:10,569
And she's not the only one.
263
00:26:10,652 --> 00:26:14,281
[♪ threatening music]
264
00:26:14,364 --> 00:26:16,700
A coral trout.
265
00:26:19,786 --> 00:26:22,664
Growing up to three feet long
and weighing three times
266
00:26:22,747 --> 00:26:25,584
as much as Scarlett.
267
00:26:28,128 --> 00:26:31,423
Big enough to be a threat.
268
00:26:34,384 --> 00:26:37,554
Scarlett is certainly
keeping an eye on him.
269
00:26:40,348 --> 00:26:44,352
But not because she's scared.
270
00:26:45,937 --> 00:26:48,815
[♪ threatening music]
271
00:26:48,898 --> 00:26:52,402
When the small fish flee,
272
00:26:55,280 --> 00:26:57,991
they're out of his reach.
273
00:27:00,493 --> 00:27:03,496
Not Scarlett's though!
274
00:27:06,041 --> 00:27:08,460
He needs to call in the octopus cavalry,
275
00:27:09,169 --> 00:27:13,465
and changes his body color
from patterned to pale.
276
00:27:17,594 --> 00:27:21,473
It's the beginning of a signal
Scarlett's been waiting for.
277
00:27:23,016 --> 00:27:27,479
Because this trout is
now her hunting buddy!
278
00:27:33,109 --> 00:27:37,238
Scarlett watches as he
shows her where to look.
279
00:27:44,412 --> 00:27:47,749
Then begins a sweep search.
280
00:27:52,587 --> 00:27:54,631
When she's in the right place,
281
00:27:54,714 --> 00:27:57,884
the trout returns to his normal pattern.
282
00:28:01,971 --> 00:28:05,266
They appear to be using their
bodies to talk to each other.
283
00:28:11,439 --> 00:28:14,859
One really fundamental
component of human language
284
00:28:14,943 --> 00:28:17,404
is a thing called referential signaling.
285
00:28:17,487 --> 00:28:19,155
My little girl, she's one year old,
286
00:28:19,239 --> 00:28:21,241
and she's already started
pointing to certain things
287
00:28:21,324 --> 00:28:23,493
and so I can deduce
that she might want a drink
288
00:28:23,576 --> 00:28:25,036
if she points to my water bottle,
289
00:28:25,704 --> 00:28:28,331
but of course, a fish doesn't
have a hand to point,
290
00:28:28,415 --> 00:28:30,917
so they do a headstand.
291
00:28:31,626 --> 00:28:34,129
Here we have really unique communication
292
00:28:34,212 --> 00:28:37,298
occurring between different species.
293
00:28:40,176 --> 00:28:43,304
[narrator] Scarlett
gets help finding food.
294
00:28:48,893 --> 00:28:52,313
If she misses,
295
00:28:52,397 --> 00:28:55,108
more for the trout.
296
00:28:57,068 --> 00:28:59,821
It's teamwork.
297
00:29:07,203 --> 00:29:11,374
It's given Alex an idea
for an impromptu experiment.
298
00:29:13,710 --> 00:29:15,920
[Dr. Alex Schnell] Science often
starts with an idea,
299
00:29:16,004 --> 00:29:18,298
even if they're crazy ideas.
300
00:29:18,381 --> 00:29:20,717
After witnessing the octopus
hunting with the fish,
301
00:29:20,800 --> 00:29:23,428
I decided to try something.
302
00:29:27,724 --> 00:29:30,268
[narrator] Today
Scarlett is hunting alone.
303
00:29:35,648 --> 00:29:37,734
[Dr. Alex Schnell] I follow
her around and wait until
304
00:29:37,817 --> 00:29:41,362
she flushes out crustaceans
from the coral rubble.
305
00:29:42,697 --> 00:29:46,701
I can see that she misses a
few crabs here and there.
306
00:29:56,753 --> 00:29:59,839
I start pointing towards them.
307
00:30:05,553 --> 00:30:11,976
[♪ energetic music]
308
00:30:12,060 --> 00:30:14,062
And to my surprise, she responded.
309
00:30:19,609 --> 00:30:21,486
She had an understanding
of what I was trying to
310
00:30:21,569 --> 00:30:24,364
communicate to her.
311
00:30:28,243 --> 00:30:30,620
[narrator] Scarlett is
quick to catch the prey
312
00:30:30,703 --> 00:30:32,956
Alex has shown her.
313
00:30:35,834 --> 00:30:37,418
[Dr. Alex Schnell] Maybe she preferred me
314
00:30:37,502 --> 00:30:38,962
as a hunting partner,
315
00:30:39,045 --> 00:30:41,047
I was playing the role of the fish,
316
00:30:41,130 --> 00:30:44,467
but I wasn't taking any of her catch.
317
00:30:46,469 --> 00:30:49,222
It felt weird, and wonderful
318
00:30:49,305 --> 00:30:52,350
to be having this
interaction with Scarlett.
319
00:30:55,478 --> 00:31:02,110
Here we are, separated by over
550 million years of evolution,
320
00:31:02,193 --> 00:31:04,988
but we're having a conversation.
321
00:31:08,950 --> 00:31:12,078
It just felt like magic.
322
00:31:15,248 --> 00:31:18,710
[♪ majestic music]
323
00:31:18,793 --> 00:31:20,795
[narrator] The more time
we spend in the water
324
00:31:20,879 --> 00:31:22,797
with octopuses,
325
00:31:22,881 --> 00:31:25,884
the more they surprise us.
326
00:31:28,177 --> 00:31:31,764
Every remarkable new discovery,
327
00:31:33,600 --> 00:31:35,393
breaking down our beliefs
328
00:31:35,977 --> 00:31:41,149
about what they could, or should do.
329
00:31:45,028 --> 00:31:49,198
Far from being lifelong loners,
330
00:31:49,282 --> 00:31:53,286
they can be social animals,
331
00:31:54,329 --> 00:32:01,002
but ones that use their
skills, selectively,
332
00:32:01,085 --> 00:32:03,296
to get ahead.
333
00:32:04,714 --> 00:32:10,136
From octopus moms, doing
the best for their babies,
334
00:32:12,472 --> 00:32:17,477
to cross-species partnerships,
335
00:32:17,560 --> 00:32:20,229
even with us.
336
00:32:21,522 --> 00:32:25,485
As long as it suits them.
337
00:32:31,157 --> 00:32:34,786
What more secrets are yet to be revealed?
338
00:32:35,954 --> 00:32:40,291
Only time will tell.
339
00:32:51,719 --> 00:32:54,013
[splashing]
340
00:32:54,097 --> 00:32:56,474
[bubbles]
341
00:32:56,557 --> 00:32:59,644
When National Geographic
Explorer Dr. Alex Schnell
342
00:32:59,727 --> 00:33:02,689
first went looking for a day octopus,
343
00:33:04,232 --> 00:33:07,402
she couldn't have imagined
the journey she'd begun.
344
00:33:08,903 --> 00:33:11,906
Or the friend she would make.
345
00:33:16,077 --> 00:33:17,787
[James Cameron] So this is pretty amazing,
346
00:33:17,870 --> 00:33:20,415
it's really fascinated by you.
347
00:33:20,915 --> 00:33:24,293
As fascinated by me as I am by her.
348
00:33:30,133 --> 00:33:31,968
But what do you think it is,
do you think it's the eyes
349
00:33:32,051 --> 00:33:35,179
that it, it recognizes a,
a thinking being?
350
00:33:35,263 --> 00:33:38,725
Well, I feel like they're
driven by so much curiosity.
351
00:33:38,808 --> 00:33:40,143
[James Cameron] Yeah.
352
00:33:40,226 --> 00:33:44,272
No, you can really sense
her curiosity about you.
353
00:33:47,525 --> 00:33:50,111
[narrator] Day octopus are normally timid,
354
00:33:50,194 --> 00:33:53,781
but this one seemed to
welcome Alex into her world.
355
00:33:55,366 --> 00:33:59,203
I think it's amazing how
quickly she discarded the idea
356
00:33:59,287 --> 00:34:01,414
-that you might be threatening.
-Mmm.
357
00:34:01,497 --> 00:34:04,292
Curiosity outweighed the danger signals.
358
00:34:04,375 --> 00:34:05,376
Yeah, yeah.
359
00:34:05,501 --> 00:34:08,254
A bigger creature, unfamiliar,
could be anything.
360
00:34:08,337 --> 00:34:09,422
-Uh-huh.
-you know.
361
00:34:09,505 --> 00:34:12,341
-Yeah, absolutely and she initiates...
-[James Cameron] Yeah.
362
00:34:12,425 --> 00:34:15,303
[Dr. Alex Schnell] The touch,
which is really important.
363
00:34:24,937 --> 00:34:28,566
[narrator] Alex never dreamt
that an animal so alien,
364
00:34:28,649 --> 00:34:30,485
so different,
365
00:34:30,568 --> 00:34:33,446
would reach out to her.
366
00:34:35,031 --> 00:34:37,450
How could she have any basis for that,
367
00:34:37,533 --> 00:34:40,787
there wouldn't have been any
kind of innate memory of that.
368
00:34:40,870 --> 00:34:42,330
[sighing]
369
00:34:42,413 --> 00:34:44,248
-I ask myself that question all the time.
-Yeah.
370
00:34:46,918 --> 00:34:49,712
[Dr. Alex Schnell] There's a
lot going on in that brain.
371
00:34:49,796 --> 00:34:52,090
[James Cameron] Yeah.
372
00:34:56,177 --> 00:34:58,763
[narrator] The time spent with
Scarlett was further proof
373
00:34:58,846 --> 00:35:02,725
of just how intelligent octopus are.
374
00:35:03,059 --> 00:35:06,854
They learn fast, because they have to.
375
00:35:08,815 --> 00:35:11,984
They don't have anyone to learn from, uh,
376
00:35:12,068 --> 00:35:13,945
they don't live with brothers or sisters.
377
00:35:14,028 --> 00:35:16,030
Right, so it's not... it's not culturally
378
00:35:16,114 --> 00:35:18,866
passed down and taught
by parents or you know.
379
00:35:18,950 --> 00:35:22,286
[Dr. Alex Schnell] No, and I
think everything is learnt
380
00:35:22,370 --> 00:35:23,663
from their environment.
381
00:35:23,746 --> 00:35:25,957
[James Cameron] Yeah.
382
00:35:30,545 --> 00:35:33,381
Don't their brains develop very
rapidly compared to say ours,
383
00:35:33,464 --> 00:35:35,133
just, just physiologically?
384
00:35:35,216 --> 00:35:37,468
[Dr. Alex Schnell] Yeah, so
it's life in the fast lane.
385
00:35:37,552 --> 00:35:38,761
The stakes are high,
386
00:35:38,845 --> 00:35:40,930
-they don't have anyone to protect them.
-[James Cameron] Right.
387
00:35:41,013 --> 00:35:42,765
[Dr. Alex Schnell] So they
have to learn really quickly.
388
00:35:42,849 --> 00:35:44,725
Yeah and they don't have
any natural protection
389
00:35:44,809 --> 00:35:47,270
like shell, teeth,
claws, anything like that,
390
00:35:47,353 --> 00:35:50,314
so they, yeah, they can just,
they can hide, they can plan,
391
00:35:50,398 --> 00:35:52,400
they can watch, they can strategize.
392
00:35:52,483 --> 00:35:53,901
[Dr. Alex Schnell] Exactly.
393
00:35:53,985 --> 00:35:55,278
Their mind is their weapon.
394
00:35:55,361 --> 00:35:57,488
[James Cameron] Yeah.
395
00:35:59,490 --> 00:36:01,409
They're kind of scientists.
396
00:36:01,492 --> 00:36:04,036
You know, like the way
kids are scientists.
397
00:36:04,120 --> 00:36:05,872
Kids just wanna know how
things work, right?
398
00:36:05,955 --> 00:36:08,749
So they're these young,
curious minds that are
399
00:36:08,833 --> 00:36:12,879
figuring out a theory of how
their world works around them.
400
00:36:12,962 --> 00:36:16,632
Mm-hm, yeah, it's a completely
alternative pathway
401
00:36:16,716 --> 00:36:18,593
-to intelligence, and that's...
-[James Cameron] Yeah.
402
00:36:18,676 --> 00:36:22,263
...what draws me to
studying these animals.
403
00:36:22,346 --> 00:36:25,516
And these guys are just
breaking all of the rules.
404
00:36:26,017 --> 00:36:29,270
[narrator] With their remarkable
intelligence and curiosity,
405
00:36:29,353 --> 00:36:32,148
octopuses overcome almost any obstacle
406
00:36:32,231 --> 00:36:34,275
their habitat throws at them.
407
00:36:35,318 --> 00:36:38,779
Problem-solving masterminds
that never switch off.
408
00:36:44,243 --> 00:36:45,620
She's out, she's sleeping.
409
00:36:45,703 --> 00:36:46,871
She's sleeping, yeah.
410
00:36:46,954 --> 00:36:48,956
Octopus snoring.
411
00:36:49,332 --> 00:36:51,584
[Dr. Alex Schnell] It's really
interesting because she goes through
412
00:36:51,667 --> 00:36:53,920
like this still sleep cycle here,
413
00:36:54,003 --> 00:36:56,589
but then she'll have a
moment when she starts to
414
00:36:56,672 --> 00:36:58,257
move quite a bit,
415
00:36:58,341 --> 00:37:00,343
this is what we call an
active phase of sleep.
416
00:37:00,426 --> 00:37:01,510
[James Cameron] Yeah, like REM sleep.
417
00:37:01,594 --> 00:37:02,887
-Absolutely.
-Yeah.
418
00:37:02,970 --> 00:37:05,932
And what happens when humans
have an active phase of sleep
419
00:37:06,015 --> 00:37:08,059
-is we dream.
-Right.
420
00:37:08,142 --> 00:37:11,729
And so it might mean
that she's also dreaming.
421
00:37:11,812 --> 00:37:13,856
Yeah. Oh, she's dreaming.
422
00:37:13,940 --> 00:37:15,441
Trust me, she's dreaming.
423
00:37:15,524 --> 00:37:16,734
Come on, look.
424
00:37:16,901 --> 00:37:19,362
I mean it's like a, like a
dog's paws, you know,
425
00:37:19,445 --> 00:37:20,571
when they're chasing rabbits
in their, in their dream.
426
00:37:20,655 --> 00:37:21,656
Absolutely.
427
00:37:21,739 --> 00:37:23,282
Of course, we don't know
dogs are dreaming,
428
00:37:23,366 --> 00:37:25,910
but we know dogs are dreaming, we know it.
429
00:37:27,078 --> 00:37:28,454
Well, dreaming is really important to me,
430
00:37:28,537 --> 00:37:30,790
I mean I do a lot of my creative work,
431
00:37:30,873 --> 00:37:32,250
I think, in dreams.
432
00:37:32,333 --> 00:37:33,459
You know.
433
00:37:34,043 --> 00:37:35,711
I mean I always said it's my
own private streaming channel
434
00:37:35,795 --> 00:37:37,296
that's free.
435
00:37:37,380 --> 00:37:40,383
But you know Avatar was
based on dream imagery,
436
00:37:40,466 --> 00:37:42,468
Terminator was based on dream imagery,
437
00:37:42,551 --> 00:37:46,472
scenes in Aliens were
based on dream imagery.
438
00:37:47,223 --> 00:37:50,309
Seems pretty obvious she's dreaming to me.
439
00:37:50,685 --> 00:37:53,437
Now what she's dreaming about,
that we can't answer.
440
00:37:53,521 --> 00:37:56,315
[Dr. Alex Schnell] No,
that we can't answer.
441
00:37:57,233 --> 00:37:59,777
You'll notice during the active phase,
442
00:37:59,860 --> 00:38:01,612
she's twitching and also...
443
00:38:01,696 --> 00:38:02,697
-She's doing it.
-Changing color.
444
00:38:02,780 --> 00:38:04,323
-She's doing it right now. Yeah.
-Mmm.
445
00:38:04,407 --> 00:38:07,326
That could mean that
she's processing memory.
446
00:38:07,410 --> 00:38:10,871
Yeah, so that could be
experience, could be location,
447
00:38:10,955 --> 00:38:14,375
could be building, you know,
some kind of geographic map...
448
00:38:14,458 --> 00:38:15,501
-Exactly.
-Memory map.
449
00:38:15,918 --> 00:38:17,253
[Dr. Alex Schnell] Building
a mental map of her habitat,
450
00:38:17,545 --> 00:38:21,340
which could save her life in a,
you know, in a future encounter.
451
00:38:21,424 --> 00:38:25,011
Even looking at their
behaviors and the way that
452
00:38:25,094 --> 00:38:26,929
their skin changes,
453
00:38:27,013 --> 00:38:29,682
that in itself is a
window into their mind.
454
00:38:30,891 --> 00:38:34,854
While we can't talk to them,
their skin tell the stories.
455
00:38:34,937 --> 00:38:36,480
It does tell a story.
456
00:38:38,316 --> 00:38:40,526
[narrator] If octopuses do dream,
457
00:38:40,609 --> 00:38:42,028
it is one of many secrets
458
00:38:42,111 --> 00:38:45,197
that scientists have yet to discover.
459
00:38:46,991 --> 00:38:49,160
The more time we spend in their world,
460
00:38:49,660 --> 00:38:53,247
the more we learn about the
intelligent ways they survive.
461
00:38:56,459 --> 00:39:00,546
Just ten years ago, a large
gathering of Dorado females
462
00:39:00,629 --> 00:39:03,799
was discovered 10,000 feet deep.
463
00:39:06,010 --> 00:39:07,928
[Dr. Alex Schnell] So this
is more your territory.
464
00:39:08,012 --> 00:39:09,597
[James Cameron] Well, I've seen
these guys plenty of times
465
00:39:09,680 --> 00:39:13,100
but I, I haven't seen this kind of
uh, aggregating behavior
466
00:39:13,184 --> 00:39:14,935
where you see a bunch of
them in one place,
467
00:39:15,019 --> 00:39:17,271
they're usually solo acts.
468
00:39:17,355 --> 00:39:19,357
Out of the 300 species of octopus,
469
00:39:19,440 --> 00:39:20,691
most of them are loners.
470
00:39:20,775 --> 00:39:21,942
Right.
471
00:39:22,276 --> 00:39:24,904
But you have a handful of
species where you will see them
472
00:39:24,987 --> 00:39:26,781
aggregate into these small communities.
473
00:39:26,864 --> 00:39:28,908
[James Cameron] Yeah.
474
00:39:30,326 --> 00:39:33,037
[Dr. Alex Schnell] They've come
together here collectively,
475
00:39:33,120 --> 00:39:35,164
to take advantage of the hot water
476
00:39:35,247 --> 00:39:36,707
that's seeping out of the vent.
477
00:39:36,791 --> 00:39:41,462
Right, and, and you're thinking
that the warmth of that,
478
00:39:41,921 --> 00:39:45,132
that hydro-thermal flow,
that warm water coming up,
479
00:39:45,216 --> 00:39:47,885
-is causing the eggs to develop faster.
-Yeah.
480
00:39:47,968 --> 00:39:49,512
Like a bird keeping its eggs warm.
481
00:39:49,595 --> 00:39:50,596
[Dr. Alex Schnell] Exactly,
otherwise it would just
482
00:39:50,679 --> 00:39:52,556
take too long.
483
00:39:54,517 --> 00:39:57,103
We don't even have a
name for an octopus group.
484
00:39:57,186 --> 00:39:58,354
[laughs].
485
00:39:58,437 --> 00:39:59,730
Uh, well, what would you call it?
486
00:39:59,814 --> 00:40:01,357
A flock of, of octopuses?
487
00:40:01,440 --> 00:40:03,192
-Yeah.
-A flocktopus!
488
00:40:03,275 --> 00:40:04,652
Flocktopus.
489
00:40:04,735 --> 00:40:06,237
[laughs].
490
00:40:09,156 --> 00:40:10,699
[James Cameron] What's amazing,
every time you go into
491
00:40:10,783 --> 00:40:14,995
the deep ocean, you're always
finding out something new.
492
00:40:15,079 --> 00:40:16,622
So how deep have you gone then?
493
00:40:16,705 --> 00:40:19,083
Well, I've gone a lot deeper than this.
494
00:40:19,166 --> 00:40:23,003
Uh, actually to the deepest
place in the, in the world,
495
00:40:23,087 --> 00:40:26,006
but once you get down below,
you know 500 or 1,000 feet,
496
00:40:26,090 --> 00:40:28,300
it's all pitch black, all the way down,
497
00:40:28,384 --> 00:40:30,219
and I think we're at, what 10,000?
498
00:40:30,302 --> 00:40:32,471
-10,000 feet.
-10,000 feet here.
499
00:40:32,555 --> 00:40:34,723
Yeah so, it's pitch black
all day every day,
500
00:40:34,807 --> 00:40:36,517
you know, and cold.
501
00:40:36,600 --> 00:40:40,438
But I've heard that you have
also seen a dumbo octopus.
502
00:40:40,521 --> 00:40:42,231
-Oh, the dumbos are beautiful.
-Yeah.
503
00:40:42,314 --> 00:40:44,233
Absolutely gorgeous and
they have their little
504
00:40:44,316 --> 00:40:46,527
head fins, their little cephalic fins.
505
00:40:47,903 --> 00:40:51,407
They look like dumbo ears
but they're really fins.
506
00:40:51,490 --> 00:40:52,950
[Dr. Alex Schnell] Yeah.
507
00:40:53,033 --> 00:40:54,660
[James Cameron] I don't think
any other species have fins
508
00:40:54,743 --> 00:40:57,413
like that on their head, but
they're gorgeous, they're,
509
00:40:57,496 --> 00:40:58,706
they're translucent
510
00:40:58,789 --> 00:41:01,333
and they have a kind of
an iridescent quality,
511
00:41:01,417 --> 00:41:03,919
they're really quite beautiful.
512
00:41:04,003 --> 00:41:05,838
Do you draw creative inspiration
513
00:41:05,921 --> 00:41:07,381
from these explorations?
514
00:41:07,465 --> 00:41:08,549
[James Cameron] Absolutely.
515
00:41:08,632 --> 00:41:11,969
I've got some characters in an
upcoming Avatar film that are inspired
516
00:41:12,052 --> 00:41:14,805
by some of the deep, uh, deep creature,
517
00:41:14,889 --> 00:41:16,140
deep cephalopods.
518
00:41:16,223 --> 00:41:18,350
-Oh, excellent.
-Thanks.
519
00:41:18,434 --> 00:41:20,394
Can't say anything more
about that right now.
520
00:41:20,478 --> 00:41:21,896
[laughing]
521
00:41:22,396 --> 00:41:24,148
I mean not only are these, like,
522
00:41:24,231 --> 00:41:27,943
particularly alien-looking octopus,
523
00:41:28,027 --> 00:41:33,324
but I think all octopuses
are kind of alien.
524
00:41:33,407 --> 00:41:35,576
I think that's what draws us to them,
525
00:41:35,659 --> 00:41:39,163
because we, as humans are so
fascinated by the unknown
526
00:41:39,246 --> 00:41:42,333
and by the alien, and here we have
527
00:41:42,416 --> 00:41:44,960
a very alien-like creature,
528
00:41:45,044 --> 00:41:47,129
but then we can
resonate with them as well,
529
00:41:47,213 --> 00:41:49,048
they show these familiar traits
530
00:41:49,131 --> 00:41:50,883
that we can really connect to.
531
00:41:50,966 --> 00:41:53,135
I mean the ocean still
has so much to teach us,
532
00:41:53,219 --> 00:41:54,929
even in the places we think we know.
533
00:41:55,012 --> 00:41:56,305
Oh, absolutely.
534
00:41:56,388 --> 00:41:58,182
Yeah, there's so much to learn still.
535
00:41:58,265 --> 00:42:01,393
We've got a whole different
alien world down there.
536
00:42:01,477 --> 00:42:03,479
[James Cameron] That's right.
537
00:42:07,858 --> 00:42:12,905
[♪ closing theme music]
538
00:42:43,978 --> 00:42:45,521
Captioned by Cotter Media Group.