German magazine Spektrum der Wissenschaft reports on work by Wenci Xin and colleagues at the National University of Singapore, published in the Journal of Experimental Biology. They found that common octopuses can pass through openings narrower than their body. Using the distance between the eyes as a stand-in for the cartilage capsule around the brain, they watched the animals probe a hole with one arm, add more arms, then push head and mantle through.

Failed attempts suggest octopuses do not always judge correctly whether they will fit. Only three animals were tested, so the authors warn against broad conclusions. It is a neat example of science reporting its own limits, and of how evolution solves problems in ways no designer would draw up.

Source: Spektrum der Wissenschaft / dpa (German) (2026-11-05)
https://www.spektrum.de/news/kraken-oktopusse-zwaengen-sich-durch-schmalste-loecher/2352868

Summarised by the FTI newsdesk.