Giant octopuses may have ruled the ancient oceans 100 million years ago, at a time when dinosaurs ruled the land. According to new research, some of the earliest octopuses are believed to have been powerful predators, equipped with powerful arms for grabbing prey and beaked jaws for crushing shells and bones.
A new study of exceptionally well-preserved jaws suggests they reached lengths of up to 19 meters, which could make them the largest invertebrates known to science, writes BBC.
For decades, paleontologists believed that the top predators in the oceans were vertebrates such as fish and reptiles, while invertebrates such as octopuses and squid played a secondary role. However, a new study by scientists from Hokkaido University in Japan calls into question the previously held notion of ancient octopuses.
Their analysis of fossil jaws indicates that giant octopuses glided across the oceans, capable of chewing through the hard shells and skeletons of large fish and marine reptiles. The study estimates the body length to be approximately 1.5 to 4.5 meters, which with the long arms gives a total length of about 7 to 19 meters. Even the lower end of that range makes the animal huge by today’s standards.
Another striking feature is that the wear of the fossilized jaws is not equal on the left and right sides, suggesting that the animals may have preferred one side when feeding. In living animals, the tendency to use one side of the body over the other is associated with advanced brain function.
Modern octopuses are known for their intelligence, problem-solving abilities, and complex hunting strategies. The giant Pacific octopus, the largest species alive today, can have an arm span of more than 5.5 meters, and videos show them battling sharks over a meter long.
– They could perfectly hold such an animal with their arms and suckers and there was no escape, said Christian Klug, paleontologist from the University of Zurich, who reviewed the research.
However, many questions remain open. Scientists can only speculate about the exact shape of these animals, the size of their fins or the speed at which they swam.
Also, no fossils have yet been found with stomach contents that would provide direct evidence of their diet. dr. Nick Longrich, a palaeontologist at the University of Bath, said his gut feeling was that they fed mainly on ammonites.
However, he adds, like modern octopuses, they were probably opportunistic and voracious predators that wouldn’t pass up other prey if given the chance.
– We will need more time to understand this, he said and added:
. It’s kind of a mystery.
For now, the fossils offer an intriguing glimpse of a sea giant that may have roamed the ancient seas, armed with crushing jaws, powerful arms and a brain that may have helped it compete with other top predators.
The research was published in the journal Science.
