''Enteroctopus zealandicus'', the yellow octopus, is a large

octopus An octopus (: octopuses or octopodes) is a soft-bodied, eight-limbed mollusc of the order Octopoda (, ). The order consists of some 300 species and is grouped within the class Cephalopoda with squids, cuttlefish, and nautiloids. Like oth ...

of the genus ''

Enteroctopus ''Enteroctopus'' is an octopus genus whose members are sometimes known as giant octopuses. Etymology The generic name ''Enteroctopus'' was created by Alphonse Tremeau de Rochebrune and Jules François Mabille in 1887 and published in 1889, ...

''. It is endemic to the waters surrounding New Zealand.

Description

''Enteroctopus zealandicus'' has the distinctive characteristics of the genus ''Enteroctopus'', including longitudinal folds on the body and large paddle-like papillae. ''E. zealandicus'' is a large octopus, reaching a total length of at least , though few whole samples have been collected and this is only a guide.

Range and habitat

''Enteroctopus zealandicus'' is endemic to New Zealand. Samples have been collected along the east coast of the south island, Chatham Rise, Campbell Plateau, Stewart, Auckland and Antipodes Islands; and from the surface down to depth. There is an absence of published information about the preferred habitat or diet of this species.

Predators

''Enteroctopus zealandicus'' is one of the most important prey of

New Zealand sea lion The New Zealand sea lion (''Phocarctos hookeri''), once known as Hooker's sea lion, and as (for both male and female) or (male) and (female) in Māori, is a species of sea lion that is endemic to New Zealand and primarily breeds on New Zeala ...

s at the

Auckland Island Auckland Island () is the main island of the eponymous uninhabited archipelago in the Pacific Ocean. It is part of the New Zealand subantarctic area. It is inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage list together with the other New Zealand Subant ...

s and Campbell Island, in the New Zealand

Subantarctic The sub-Antarctic zone is a physiographic region in the Southern Hemisphere, located immediately north of the Antarctic region. This translates roughly to a latitude of between 46th parallel south, 46° and 60th parallel south, 60° south of t ...

. It has also been identified from beaks found in the gut of beached whales.

References

Cephalopods of Oceania Endemic fauna of New Zealand Endemic molluscs of New Zealand Cephalopods described in 1944 Molluscs of New Zealand Molluscs of the Pacific Ocean Octopodidae {{Octopus-stub