Octopus Biology and Ecology

Octopus Biology and Ecology describes important aspects of the lives of these fascinating animals, including their origin, biogeography, life history, distribution, behaviour, migratory patterns, diet, predators, and parasites. The emphasis is on species in highly variable coastal environments and includes a discussion of the potential threats and unexpected benefits of our changing climate and oceans. Detailed accounts, with many wonderful images in colour, are provided for each of the 21 species selected from around the world, each of which is described by local experts. The final chapter provides a detailed breakdown of research on octopuses and the topic areas in which this field is likely to expand in the future, recognizing in particular the growing importance of research into the effects of global changes. As well as climate change, key areas covered include behaviour and cognition, iEcology and citizen science, bio-robotics, deep-sea research, and culture and welfare.

Octopus Biology and Ecology is a veritable mine of information for professional marine biologists and students alike. Octopuses are rapidly becoming a more widely exploited source of protein for human consumption, so it is important that information about their biology and ecology is available to help ensure that their exploitation will be sustainable. This book is therefore essential reading for fishery and aquaculture scientists, conservationists, and resource managers.

• Provides a thorough overview of the biodiversity of octopuses
• Presents detailed information about 21 different species
• Includes a profound analysis of past, present, and future trends in octopus research

Rui Rosa graduated in Marine Biology by the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon (FCUL) in 1999 and completed a PhD degree in Biology by the same institution in 2005. After post-doctoral activities at the University of Rhode Island (USA), he became Senior Researcher and Auxiliary Professor at FCUL. He published 202 peer reviewed publications (h-factor of 32), 3 books and 10 book chapters. He has co-edited 2 books and conducts editorial activities in several international journals. His research seeks to understand how climate-related drivers of change affect marine biodiversity, including cephalopods.

Professor, International Fisheries Science Unit, Tohoku University Graduate School of Agricultural Science, Japan

Graham Pierce is a Zoology graduate (University of London, 1980) with a Masters degree in Ecology and a PhD in animal behaviour (both University of Aberdeen, 1981 and 1986). He worked as a postdoc at the University of Aberdeen until 1996, on marine mammal feeding ecology and (since 1990) cephalopod biology and ecology, then joining the University’s teaching staff and becoming Professor in 2008. He held a Marie Curie Chair at Instituto Español de Oceanografia (Vigo, Spain) during 2007-2010 and was a visiting professor at University of Aveiro (Portugal) during 2013-2016. He left Aberdeen to join IIM CSIC in 2017, and is currently Head of the Department of Marine ecology and Resources. He has published 290 papers in peer-reviewed journals as well as 40 book chapers and has co-edited four books on cephalopods. He is co-chair of the ICES Workng Group on Cephalopod Fisheries and Life History and a past President of the Cephlopod International Advisory Council. He works on the life history, ecology, exploitation and conservation of marine animals, with particular interests in cephalopods and marine mammals.

Roger Villanueva graduated in Biological Sciences by the Faculty of Biology of the University of Barcelona in 1989 and obtained the PhD from the same institution in 1992 studying the ecology of cephalopods from the Benguela Current. Later, during his two-year postdoctoral stay at the Observatoire Océanologique de Banyuls, France, he discovered the beauty of the early life stages of cephalopods and these remain as one of his preferred research topics to the present. He is tenured scientist at the Institut de Ciències del Mar from 2001, he has published 60 peer-reviewed articles, 4 book chapters an co-edited one book.