The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1923-08-14
OCTOPUS is SHY,
NOT MAN KILLER
Sliced TentaCIeS of "DeviIfish,"
Caught Like Flies in Trap,
Table DeIicacy.

San Francisco.-Devilfsh, better
known as "polypus octopus bongkong-
ensis," are being caught at Santa Cruz,
CAL, like flies in a trap, and the ten
tacles are being shipped to fish mar
kets In San Francisco, New York and
other cities, where they are sliced and
sold at from so to 60 cents a pound,
according to G.. B. Florence, secretary
of the California state fish exchange
here.
Mr.. Florence says the sliced octopus
tentacle makes a succulent table deli
'cacy when properly fried.
While fishermen emulate Victor
Hugo and other writer's of fiction by
telling of terrific battles with giant
devDfsh, usually ending by explaining
how the fish reached one of it's eight
arms above the water and wrapped 1t
around the boat, breaking the craft In
TWO, Mr.. Florence and Prof. Harold
Heath. department of zoology, STAN
FORD university, California, state that
this Is physically impossible. Pro-
lessor Heath describes the octopus as
being "of a shy n retiring disposi-
ton"
The dsvil1sh has no bones or no
structure of any kind" says Mr.. Flor
ance ut cannot swim, but can only
boat on the water, or pfopel itself on
the floor of the ocean by means of fas-
tening it's suckers IN a rock and pull
ing itself along.
Don't Brighten Fishermen.
"1Sapb of tho iob+ tor+o.Io- to- 49,
N with cup-shaped suckers, and
these form a vacuum when fastened
on an object. Fishermen haul them
out of thet traps with their bare hands
and throw them in boxes in a manner
that Is extremely undignihed to a fish
that has an age-oId fctional reputation
OF being a man killer and boat
smasher."
In the picturesque food shops that
line the narrow streets of San Fran
c1sco's colorful Chinatown, the ten
tacles of the devilfsh may be seen
hanging from hooks alongside many
other edibles that are strange to the
native American. On the floors Of the
Wholesale fish houses here the devil
fish may be seen stacked In jellylike
heaps. with t~entacles, in some cases,
extending ten feet across, five feet
Prom each side of the small, ~egg-shaped
head.
Nv traps at Santa Cruz, where the
majority of the devilfish are caught on
the Pacific coast, are built like fly
traps, only much larger. The traps are
made of wire, with a cone-shaped en-
tnRnce for the octopus to squeeze I
through in order to reach the bait.
Changes Color in Moment.
Instead of being a fighter. the devil
fish protects itself from attack by
changing it's color and hiding from its
enemy, according to Professor Heath.
says:
ITO agility and naturally acute I
senses should be added their surpris- /;
ing ability to change their color to har-
monte with that of their surround :
lngs. so that prey and enemies alike
are usually of their pfox-
unity. This color change is based upon
elastic sacs filled with pigment
md supplied with muscles for causing
heir expansion.
las a devilfsh crawls about on the
sea bottom its color can be seen to
,hange in a twinkling from deep choco-
ate through dull red and to gray. If
sand or rock is n on the
the skin is usually thrown
INTO Jumps n ridges, so that under
til conditions the body is practically
INVISIBLE"