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Cited by 70Cephalopods and Marine BiologyMarine Invertebrate Physiology and EcologyMotor Control and Adaptation

Self-recognition mechanism between skin and suckers prevents octopus arms from interfering with each other

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Nesher, Nir, Levy, Guy, Grasso, Frank W., Hochner, Binyamin·2014·Current Biology
DOI 10.1016/j.cub.2014.04.024
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Abstract

Controlling movements of flexible arms is a challenging task for the octopus because of the virtually infinite number of degrees of freedom (DOFs) [1, 2]. Octopuses simplify this control by using stereotypical motion patterns that reduce the DOFs, in the control space, to a workable few [2]. These movements are triggered by the brain and are generated by motor programs embedded in the peripheral neuromuscular system of the arm [3-5]. The hundreds of suckers along each arm have a tendency to stick to almost any object they contact [6-9]. The existence of this reflex could pose significant problems with unplanned interactions between the arms if not appropriately managed. This problem is likely to be accentuated because it is accepted that octopuses are "not aware of their arms" [10-14]. Here we report of a self-recognition mechanism that has a novel role in motor control, restraining the arms from interfering with each other. We show that the suckers of amputated arms never attach to octopus skin because a chemical in the skin inhibits the attachment reflex of the suckers. The peripheral mechanism appears to be overridden by central control because, in contrast to amputated arms, behaving octopuses sometime grab amputated arms. Surprisingly, octopuses seem to identify their own amputated arms, as they treat arms of other octopuses like food more often than their own. This self-recognition mechanism is a novel peripheral component in the embodied organization of the adaptive interactions between the octopus's brain, body, and environment [15, 16].

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  • A chemical in the octopus's skin prevents the suckers from attaching to it.

    “Nesher et al. (2014) discovered that a chemical in the octopus’s skin prevents the suckers from attaching to it.”

    From Lessons for Robotics From the Control Architecture of the Octopus (2022) · cites this paper as Nesher et al., 2014

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Authors
Nesher, N., Levy, G., Grasso, F. W., & Hochner, B.
Affiliations
  • Hebrew University of Jerusalem (IL)
  • City University of New York (US)
Corresponding author
Hochner, Binyamin
ORCID
Venue
Current Biology
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2014-06
Volume
24
Issue
11
Pages
1271-1275
ISSN
0960-9822 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1016/j.cub.2014.04.024
OpenAlex
W2086360476
Cited by
70
References
32
Citations by year
2026: 1 · 2025: 2 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 21 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 8 · 2019: 7 · 2018: 1 · 2017: 6 · 2016: 1 · 2015: 2 · 2014: 5
FWCI
4.80
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Current Biology (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
European Commission
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics › Cephalopods and Marine Biology
  • Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Paleontology › Marine Invertebrate Physiology and Ecology
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Motor Control and Adaptation
Keywords
octopus, motor control, degrees of freedom, motor programs, embodied cognition, self-other distinction
MeSH terms
Animals, Extremities, Feeding Behavior, Movement, Psychomotor Performance, Reflex, Skin, Octopodiformes

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