Octopuses are famously elusive creatures, known for their intelligence, their ability to change colors and textures to blend into their surroundings, and their uncanny ability to squeeze into impossibly tight spaces. But every so often, fishermen or researchers will pull an enormous octopus up from the depths of the ocean, revealing record-breaking sizes that seem more myth than reality.
Giant Pacific Octopus
The largest octopus species is known as the Giant Pacific octopus (Enteroctopus dofleini). These giants inhabit the northern Pacific Ocean, stretching from southern California up through Alaska and across to Russia and Japan. They typically live for 3-5 years and can grow to staggering sizes.
The largest Giant Pacific octopus on record was a female caught off the coast of Washington state in 1963. She weighed around 600 pounds and had an arm span of roughly 30 feet. To put that in perspective, the average arm span for this species is around 15 feet, with weights topping out around 110 pounds. So this particular octopus was exceptionally large.
Since then, there have been various unverified reports of Giant Pacific octopuses exceeding 600 pounds. But without an official weigh-in, these size estimates are hard to corroborate. It’s likely the 30-foot giant from the 1960s still holds the size record for the species.
Seven-Arm Octopus
While the Giant Pacific octopus takes the cake for sheer bulk, another massive octopus was captured in waters around New Zealand in 1999. Nicknamed “Seven” for its missing limb, this six-armed creature weighed about 300 pounds and had an arm span over 16 feet.
Seven was identified as a member of the Seven-arm octopus species (Haliphron atlanticus). As the name suggests, these octopuses frequently lose arms to predators looking for an easy meal. Even with only six arms, Seven was a big one. The average Seven-arm octopus weighs around only 22 pounds.
Other Outsized Octopuses
In addition to those two record setters, here are some other notably massive octopuses that have been documented:
- A 143-pound North Pacific Giant octopus was caught off the coast of Washington state in 2000.
- Fishermen near Oahu, Hawaii reeled in a 130-pound Common Blanket octopus in 2002.
- In 2008, a 122-pound Seven-arm octopus was captured in waters off New Zealand’s North Island.
- A 119-pound Giant Pacific octopus was pulled aboard a fishing boat in Alaska in 2011.
While octopuses over 100 pounds are highly uncommon, the fact that so many sizeable specimens have been found shows the impressive growth potential of these invertebrates.
Why Do Octopuses Grow So Big?
There are a few key reasons why some octopus species can attain such mammoth proportions:
- Rapid growth: Octopuses have very short lifespans, so they must grow quickly to maturity. Exceptionally fast growth under ideal conditions can lead to monster sizes.
- Abundant food: Productive hunting grounds with ample prey allow octopuses to consume enough calories to support massive growth.
- Favorable habitat: Cold, deep ocean waters with rocky habitats and den sites provide the right environment for gigantic octopus development.
In most cases, it is the female octopus that reaches record sizes. Males typically stop growing after reaching maturity to focus on breeding. Females continue growing throughout their life, allowing some to become true octo-giants.
Biggest Octopus Ever: Unconfirmed Sightings
There have long been tales from fishermen and divers describing enormous octopuses that would dwarf known size records. These accounts often lack physical evidence, but they compel us to keep searching the oceans’ depths for even bigger cephalopods.
Some unconfirmed reports of gigantic octopuses include:
- In the 1870s, fishermen in Newfoundland described battling a colossal octopus reportedly weighing over 1,000 pounds with a head the size of a horse.
- In the early 1900s, crew members on a British ship claimed to see a gigantic octopus through the clear waters of the Indian Ocean that had an estimated arm span of 75-100 feet.
- In the 1960s, divers near Santa Monica, California encountered an unidentified octopus species with a supposed arm span of around 60 feet.
While these accounts are difficult to substantiate, they raise the tantalizing possibility that octopus giants we can barely fathom may lurk in little-explored areas and depths.
Conclusion
The confirmed size records show that some octopus species can grow to awe-inspiring proportions over 100-600 pounds, with arm spans up to 30 feet. The largest verifiable octopus was a 30-foot-wide Giant Pacific octopus weighing 600 pounds. Even larger specimens likely exist, especially in deep ocean habitats. But until an indisputably colossal octopus is captured and documented, the Giant Pacific octopus holds the record for the largest known octopus in the world.
