News from Tynemouth
Suckers Weekend!
They've got blue blood, three hearts, can change shape, use jet-propulsion and have inspired myths and legends since the dawn of time.
The cephalopod family, literally 'head foot' in Greek, whose members include octopus, squid, nautilus and cuttlefish are truly 'aliens from inner space'.
In celebration of these amazing animals,
Star of the show will be the aquarium's giant Pacific octopus nicknamed Otto and with a tentacle-span of more than two metres.
Giant Pacific octopuses are the world's largest species and are found from
As well as being the largest, the giant Pacific is among the cleverest members of the cephalopod family. Individuals living in aquariums have been filmed sneaking out at night to raid nearby fish-filled displays.
They also mature incredibly quickly - going from the size of a rice grain at birth to being fully grown within the space of just two years.
Blue Reef will also be highlighting other members of the cephalopod family, several of which are on display at the aquarium
Blue Reef's Zahra d'Aronville said: "There are approximately 650 different species ranging from the tiny 5cm long sepiola to the monstrous Architeuthis dux, or giant squid, which can reach 18 metres in length and has the largest eye in the animal kingdom - apparently it's the size of a small car tyre!
"As well as native octopuses visitors will also be able to come face to face with some real living fossils - the nautilus.
"Nautilus are closely related to ammonites which are now extinct. Like snails, nautilus have an external shell which they fill with gas to control their buoyancy underwater.
"Their shell is extremely tough and capable of withstanding immense pressure as they swim as deep as 1,000 metres below the surface," she added.
Suckers Weekend activities include an Octopus quiz trail around the aquarium and the chance to make your own octopus!
