Juvenile Common Octopus (Octopus vulgaris) – Blue Heron Bridge, Riviera Beach, Fl
The Blue Heron Bridge is a biologic pantheon – underneath its structure, an incredible variety of life teems through the night. On this dive, my father and I were shooting a Jawfish, patiently waiting for her to pop in and out of her hiding hole. Floating still over the spot, this tiny Octopus decided to steal the show, ‘walking’ up across the bottom into the glow of my focus light. I sincerely obliged and began snapping off photos. It postured up as if to look into the distance, and then slunk back down nearly flat against the bottom constantly changing shape, color, and texture. We moved slowly with this creature for about 50 feet, the whole while the Octopus showing us awesome displays of body language and environmental awareness, throwing arms up towards the camera and across its surroundings. It wasn’t long before our attention was so rudely stolen by another animal – but not before we soaked in this special interaction.
Canon G15, Nauticam NAG15, Inon s2000 (x2), Sola Photo 800
1/125 sec, f/8, ISO100