01x01 - Shapeshifters

[bunniefuu]

[water trickling]

[narrator] Beneath the waves,

lives a mysterious creature,

older than the dinosaurs.

Octopus!

So incredibly alien.

Changing color in an instant.

Shapeshifting into almost anything.

They are the planet's
true masters of disguise.

Now we're discovering,

they are one of the
most intelligent beings

on the planet.

Two years immersed in their world,

reveals they use tools.

I felt completely shocked at
the level of sophistication

that I was witnessing.

[narrator] Think creatively.

Communicate with other species.

And maybe even dream.

I wonder sometimes if the
octopuses are dreaming about me,

wondering what I am, who I am.

[narrator] We're just
beginning to understand

what they have to tell us.

I have just had a
conversation with an octopus.

[♪ theme music plays]

[narrator] The Great Barrier Reef.

The biggest coral structure on the planet.

Over 1200 miles long.

And home to more than


[♪ curious music]

Including her.

The day octopus.

Octopus are so alien,

it's hard to know what you're looking at.

She, and the 300 other species,

share some similar quirks.

A siphon that propels her through water.

A soft, boneless body,

conceals a razor-sharp beak
for crushing fish and crabs.

Two bulbous eyes sit above
a big, powerful brain

that's capable of something extraordinary.

She can transform the color,
shape, and texture of her body

in a fraction of a second.

National Geographic Explorer,
Dr. Alex Schnell has spent

15 years immersed in the
world of the octopus.

Octopuses are the ultimate shapeshifters.

They can choose when to hide
and when to reveal themselves.

And studying this behavior

has offered a window into how they think.

[narrator] Every dive brings her
closer to these elusive animals.

[♪ curious music]

She has privileged
access to their extraordinary

shapeshifting skills.

A superpower that makes them hard to spot.

Your mind starts to play tricks on you,

and everywhere you look, you
feel like that's an octopus.

Is that an octopus over there?

I think that's one over there.

The minute you kind of give up
and you're like, okay,

I'm not gonna look anymore.

Something that you think
is a piece of algae,

or a piece of coral suddenly moves.

[♪ curious music]

[narrator] Alex is face to
face with a Day Octopus.

The octopus sizes Alex up.

[Dr. Alex Schnell] She's not
really sure about me at the beginning,

but we're eye to eye.

And her skin becomes smooth,
as if to reveal herself.

She becomes so relaxed that
she starts to clean herself.

Covering her eyes even though
I'm right in front of her.

And maybe that's a sign that
she's beginning to trust me.

When she reached out her arm
and put her suckers on my hand

it just felt like a life-changing moment.

And then she turns to look at
me as if to say, are you coming?

[narrator] She allows Alex
to follow her as she cruises

along the coral.

Until something spooks her.

Reef sharks, ten times her size!

No way she can out-swim
these dangerous predators.

[♪ intense music]

But the day octopus reveals
that she has something

much better than speed.

Invisibility!

[♪ peaceful music]

Every time there's danger,

the day octopus melts
into her surroundings.

[Dr. Alex Schnell] One of the
things that makes octopus

so amazing is that their brain is
connected directly to muscles

in their skin.

And these muscles are
connected to about 20 million sacks

of different colored pigments.

By stretching and relaxing
each of the tiny sacks,

the octopus can produce

an endless array of patterns and colors.

[narrator] And she can do it
all in one-fifth of a second.

[♪ intense music]

The perfect disguise.

Her trick is all the more
astounding given that she,

like all octopuses, is color-blind.

She doesn't need to see
the color, to be the color.

[Dr. Alex Schnell] We now know
that octopus skin is sensitive

to light, which suggests that
they can see with their skin

not in the way that they might
be able to detect an image,

but their skin is sensitive to
hues, shadows, and colors

so that they can detect

their environment changing around them.

[narrator] To keep herself safe,
the day octopus transforms

hundreds of times a day.

And over weeks she allows Alex to see

every shade, hue, and pattern.

They become close!

[Dr. Alex Schnell] When I
started studying octopuses,

it was difficult to tell
differences between individuals,

but if you study them for long enough,

you'll see little
imperfections on their skin,

and this day octopus had
a little scar below her eye,

and that's why I named her Scarlett.

[narrator] Time with Scarlett
shows Alex that color-changing

is only half of her skill set.

[Dr. Alex Schnell] Using small
muscular structures similar to

what we have on our tongue,
octopuses can change the

texture of their skin.

So they can go from super
smooth to really spiky in

less than a second.

But what blows my mind is they
don't actually need to touch

any of the texture that they're matching.

They can match the
texture just by looking at it.

[narrator] It's getting late,
which means more predators.

A crevice in the coral is
a safe den for the night.

So unfazed now by Alex's presence,

Scarlett's happy to drift off to sleep.

All octopuses may not have

Scarlett's ability for shapeshifting,

but most can change color.

And for some, survival depends
not on blending in,

but standing out.

[♪ majestic music]

Near the southern tip
of Australia, this pier

is home to the weird and wonderful.

As well as one of the
deadliest animals on earth.

But unlike the day octopus,

she comes out when the sun goes down.

This is a female blue-ringed octopus.

A mom-to-be.

She's small, the size of a golf ball.

She can blend into the
background if she wants to

but, it's not really her style.

Her bright blue rings
send a strong message,

a warning.

A single bite from her
hidden beak releases enough

neurotoxin to k*ll an
adult human in minutes.

Don't mess with her!

Especially today.

She's ready to lay her eggs.

But it's getting darker,

bringing out the reef's big boys.

A smooth stingray, hunting on the seabed.

She's not scared of him,

she has enough venom to easily k*ll a ray.

But the growing
darkness is more of a problem.

In the gloom, the octopus's
blue rings lose their vibrancy.

If the ray attacks?

Death to them both.

So she does something that
only blue-ringed octopus can do.

Triggering muscles to reveal
thousands of light-reflecting

cells in her rings,

she dials up her color.

While also upping the contrast

by darkening the skin around them.

[♪ threatening music]

The ray gets the message loud and clear.

This is one of the brightest
warning displays of

any animal on earth.

Now she can concentrate
on laying her eggs.

Somewhere out of reach,

to all but the most flexible.

[♪ cheerful music]

Those babies have one "k*ller" mom.

Octopuses combine their smarts
and shapeshifting skills

to expertly decide when to hide,

and when to stand out.

But some use this alien-like
superpower in other ways.

Something Dr. Alex Schnell
wants to witness.

Now that she has gained her trust,

Alex hopes Scarlett will allow her,

and colleague, Dr. Roger Hanlon,

a world expert in octopus camouflage,

to watch her hunt.

[Dr. Roger Hanlon] There's not
another animal group on the earth

that can change as
fast with as much diversity.

[narrator] He knows that Day
Octopus are extraordinary.

[Dr. Roger Hanlon] I call this
one the King of camouflage.

[narrator] Or in this case, the queen.

[♪ peaceful music]

[Dr. Alex Schnell] Does she recognize me?

My emotions and my heart say yes.

[♪ peaceful music]

Then, just like before,
she reaches out to me.

[♪ loving music]

[narrator] It seems
Roger has been accepted too.

They can both follow Scarlett

as she heads off to hunt.

[♪ playful music]

Small fish and crabs are her favorite.

But they like to hide deep in the coral.

Not a problem when your
eight arms can delve into

the tiniest openings.

[Dr. Alex Schnell]
Octopus arms are incredible.

They're sensory and smart,

and they can move even without
the brain having to tell them.

[narrator] And without bones
or joints, they're the most

flexible limbs on the planet.

They can lengthen, shorten,
and bend in any direction.

Her large brain acts as a
control center for further

brain-like structures found in
each of her sucker-lined arms.

[Dr. Alex Schnell] An octopus
have 200 suckers on each arm,

and each sucker is so
sensitive it's like having

a fingertip, nose,
and a tongue all in one.

Imagine how sensitive the
world would be to an octopus.

[narrator] But to hunt,
she needs to focus.

Scarlett must concentrate on her prey.

Not become it.

[♪ intense music]

Reef sharks are always on the
lookout for an easy meal.

This time, Scarlett uses her
talents not to blend in,

but to confuse.

She mixes up her colors and patterns,

breaking up her outline.

It's called disruptive coloration.

She can change her appearance
more than 170 times every hour.

The sharks should swim right by.

But this one isn't so easily fooled.

[♪ intense music]

She's got one last trick,

and she's left the best till last.

Stretching the skin on
her arms taut and wide,

she flashes white.

It's purposefully weird.

[Dr. Roger Hanlon] That flash
is meant to make a predator

hesitate to say, is that
what I want to eat or not?

This is a thinking, cogitating animal.

It's making decisions
every moment of the way.

I really find that extraordinary.

[narrator] Finally, a tasty crab.

Even if she really had to pull
out all the stops to get it.

Day Octopus are masterful shapeshifters,

but they have a cousin who
uses its intelligence to take

these skills to the next level.

By creating the ultimate deception.

Lush tropical jungle,

on the shores of the Lembeh Strait.

But beneath the water.

A featureless floor of volcanic sand.

A problem for this octopus.

[♪ curious music]

There's nowhere to hide,

and lots of hungry predators.

[♪ intense music]

This flounder will rip the arm
off an unfortunate octopus.

He could change color,

but in this exposed spot,

it might not be enough.

Time for some next-level shape-shifting.

[♪ curious music]

He transforms into such a
good likeness of his enemy.

He fools even a real flounder.

[♪ curious music]

Shape, color, movement.

An impersonation so good
it's earned him his name,

the mimic.

He drops the disguise when he spots prey.

[chewing]

Food's hard to find here,

unless you're a mimic.

But his quest for food
has brought him into

someone else's territory.

Damselfish.

They hate strangers invading their space.

And they've got a nasty bite.

So the mimic transforms into the one thing

they won't mess with.

The venomous Sea Krait,

their worst nightmare.

The damselfish are certainly convinced.

An Oscar-worthy performance,

but he's still hungry.

Patches of coral can be a
good place to find food.

But everyone's had the same idea.

Moray eels, groupers,

and the reef's most aggressive predator,

the venomous lionfish.

But the lionfish's fearsome reputation...

Now this he can use.

By adopting the fish's
distinctive shape and pattern,

the mimic warns off other predators.

Including real lionfish.

While he may not look exactly
like a lionfish to us,

it's how he appears to
other animals that counts.

The patch of coral is now his to hunt.

[♪ dramatic music]

This kind of shape-shifting
hints at something unique.

The mimic isn't just copying.

He appears to know how
other creatures see him.

More so, he's aware of what
each one is scared of,

and can exploit their fear.

This is strategy and manipulation,

traits we associate with
human-like intelligence.

Shapeshifting is an art
that octopus have perfected,

transforming themselves to find food,

and avoid becoming someone else's.

[♪ majestic music]

But what happens when two
masters of disguise meet?

Scarlett, the day octopus,
is resting on the reef.

[splashing]

After months of dives, she's
now very used to her visitors.

And willing to let them into
the most intimate moment

of her life.

Scarlett's distracted.

Another Day octopus.

Could it be a potential mate?

Scarlett's now just over a
year old, she may have already

mated with several males,

and stored packets of
their sperm inside her.

She can even choose to mix the
packets to fertilize her eggs.

But she's keeping her options open.

If a better-suited male comes along,

she'll get rid of these stored packets

and use his alone.

[♪ peaceful music]

They touch, sucker to sucker,
to check each other out.

Yes, he's male.

And he's into her.

But Scarlett's not won over so easily.

She wants to see what he's made of.

And he'll be judged on his shape-shifting.

A slow dance of changing color.

Rippling his skin, he shows off new bumps.

A display that could attract predators,

but he can't afford to blend in.

He must risk everything for her.

[♪ accelerating music]

[♪ accelerating music]

Now, Scarlett's interested.

Captured for the very first time,

her arms reach inside her body

and she expels the sperm from
her previous encounters,

it's an invitation.

As he unfurls his arm,

she accepts his advances.

[♪ romantic music]

This is a specialized mating
arm, found only in male octopus.

A white sperm packet

moves down a groove
in the arm and into Scarlett.

[♪ romantic music]

It's the beginning of a new generation.

[Dr. Roger Hanlon] I've got to tell you,

I've seen some of this before
with this species,

but I'd never seen what I saw today.

We've learned something scientifically.

[Dr. Alex Schnell] I typically
see octopuses on their own,

it's rare to even see them interact,

so to see two octopuses mating,

it's such an intimate moment

and such a rare sight to see in the wild.

[narrator] Each one of
Scarlett's babies will inherit

her smarts and shapeshifting skills.

[♪ dramatic music]

Octopuses are the only animals
in nature able to transform

their bodies so completely

in the quest to stay safe, feed, and mate.

The time spent in Scarlett's
world has opened Alex's eyes

to her potential.

Just what more might these
extraordinary animals

be capable of?

I've been lucky enough to
build a relationship with

the day octopus and see
her mate in the wild,

and see the way that she uses
her skin to communicate

and also to hide.

But there's still so
much more to discover.

There's so many more secrets to reveal.