A shy and tiny fish uses the mimic octopus (Thaumoctopus mimicus ), the king of camouflage, to hide itself from predators. The fish adopts brown and white spots similar to those of the octopus, which allows it to swim alongside it without danger of being seen.
The mimeo octopus is a huge cephalopod of up to 60 centimeters with the body covered in spots or stripes of white and brown. This curious animal is capable of imitating the movement of some of its marine neighbors such as the starfish or the giant crab. Thanks to its colors and its movements, the mimic octopus can swim through the ocean calmly and escape from its predators.
On the other hand, the Black Marbled Mouthfish (Stalix cf. histrio ) is a shy animal that spends much of its life swimming near sand burrows where it can easily hide from danger. However, in July last year, two researchers from the University of Gottingen (Germany) recorded a peculiar "dance" between these two species in Indonesian waters. The images show that the fish moves at the same rate as the octopus, becoming completely camouflaged thanks to the color of its scales. By imitating the imitator, the little fish can reach more remote areas to get food. The researchers, whose finding they have published in the Coral Reefs magazine, emphasize that it is the first case observed in which this species of fish emulates another animal.
