The female octopuses protect and groom their eggs from late spring to early winter, with the peak of breeding around August and September. Their young hatch in 6-8 weeks, mature in surface waters, and finally settle in kelp beds as young octopuses. As they get older, they move to deeper waters offshore to find homes in sandy mud. They eventually mate in this deep water, then move back to tide pools where the process of birth begins again. An octopus' tentacles are very strong and can pry apart shells while their beak-like mouth eats the contents.
Crabs are a favorite food, which the octopus first kills with secretions from the salivary glands.
It then brakes the crab's shell apart and after eating the body, neatly eats the legs, pulling one off at a time. An octopus has many defenses against its predators of bass and rockfishes. It can swim quickly using a powerful siphon that shoots water behind it, or squirt a cloud of ink around it, making it hard to see. They can change color in various ways to blend in with their surroundings. Most predators will avoid their rough tentacles and sharp beaks after their first tangle.