Species profile
Giant Pacific Octopus
Enteroctopus dofleini
At a glance
Giant Pacific Octopus (Enteroctopus dofleini) is an IUCN Least Concern octopus/squid regulated in 4 of 66 jurisdictions tracked by CatchRules across the U.S. and Canada.
Bag limits are uniform at 1 per angler across the 4 regulating jurisdictions.
Confirmed by 1,638 research-grade iNaturalist observations, with British Columbia, Washington, and Alaska the top jurisdictions by observation count.
Notable details
- The world's largest octopus, with typical arm spans reaching about 14 feet.
- Females lay up to 100,000 eggs and die after guarding them through hatching.
- Can change skin color and texture in milliseconds to mimic its surroundings.
- Despite its impressive size, its natural lifespan is only 3 to 5 years.
- Has three hearts: two pump blood through the gills and one through the body.
Where Giant Pacific Octopus are seen
Jurisdictions with rules for Giant Pacific Octopus
Background
Enteroctopus dofleini, also known as the giant Pacific octopus or North Pacific giant octopus, is a large marine cephalopod belonging to the genus Enteroctopus. Its spatial distribution includes the coastal North Pacific, along California, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, Alaska, Russia, northern Japan, and Korea. It can be found from the intertidal zone down to 2,000 m (6,600 ft), and is…
Background excerpt adapted from Wikipedia's Giant Pacific Octopus article (CC BY-SA). Visit Wikipedia for the full entry.
Other octopus/squid on CatchRules
Photo credit: iNaturalist / Wikipedia. Identification reference only — verify regulations with the issuing wildlife agency before retaining a catch.