The octopus is a member of the family of cephalopods which means ‘head foot’ in Greek.All cephalopods in the world have a rostrum or two-part beak which is seen in the buccal mass and surrounded by head appendages. The beak functions in a scissor-like fashion and is also known as jaws or the mandibles.Cephalopods both extinct and living currently like squids, octopuses, vampyromorphs, and belemnites may have had these beak-like structures attached to their bodies. There are millions of species of animals living in the world. You will see beautiful ones, smaller ones, huge ones, and weird ones. Everyone must have encountered one of each at some point in their lives and an octopus is one of them. Octopus is quite an interesting species, although not so beautiful, with its eight arms and a beak. The octopus has a secret weapon in its arsenal which is the scissor-like beak found hidden between those arms or tentacles.It is said that octopuses had hard shells all over their body and it was later that octopuses evolved into the slimy and squishy animals of today. It was during the Cretaceous and Jurassic periods that the octopuses lost their hard shells and turned. The hardest part of an octopus now left is the octopus beak. The evolution of the octopus has made the octopus species all over the world more agile which helps in catching its prey and also escaping the predators easily. The octopus beak is situated in the buccal mass section of the body which is the first part of the digestive system of an octopus. The octopus beak is surrounded by appendages and is used for eating and works similar to a scissor. The beak is made up of a hard substance known as chitin. This same material is found in the exoskeleton of crabs. You can compare the beak of an octopus to that of a parrot’s beak. An upper beak and a lower beak are found in the octopus’ beak, similar to a parrot’s beak. The dorsal mandible fits into the ventral mandible which moves in conjuncture with each other, similar to how jaws work.Giant squid beaks are seen and like all octopus and squid, the colossal squid also has a beak. It is similar to an octopus and is the mouth of the colossal squid. The lower beak overlaps the upper beak of a colossal squid. The beak of a colossal squid is also made of chitin and is surrounded by muscular tissue. The beak of a colossal squid is used to chop the prey and then slice. After the deed is done, the food is then passed into the esophagus and then the stomach. The esophagus is narrow in a colossal squid, so the food is broken down into smaller pieces as it has to pass through the small brain of the squid. It is quite unique to see inside the mouth of a colossal squid as, before the start of the esophagus, the food is further broken down and shredded by the radula. The radula is like a tongue with teeth. There are palatine teeth that line the cheeks which are palatine palps.There has been a case where a woman found an octopus at the local fishing derby and put it on her face. The small octopus caught by the local fisherman could be a Pacific red octopus (Octopus rubescens) or a young giant Pacific octopus. She was planning to eat it for dinner, but for a small photoshoot, put the octopus on her face. She had swelling on her arms, face, and throat and had to go to the hospital for treatment. Intrigued? Read on!If you enjoy this article, why not also read about the difference between octopus and squid and dangerous fish here on Kidadl?Do octopuses have beaks? The cephalopod beak is common as people have encountered the squid beak as well as octopus beak. The octopus has many species features in the body that helps to catch prey and evade octopus predators.The sword-like muscly arm appendages also helps them along with upper and lower beaks against wild animals of the sea. A squid beak is similar to an octopus beak and is made of the same material as that of crab exoskeletons. A squid’s beak is a marvel that has been researched a lot. The Humboldt squid (Dosidicus gigas) uses its beak to sever a fish’s spinal cord and paralyze it. Octopus beaks are made of a compound called chitin. The squid beak is also made of the same material as an octopus. All squid species have a beak that is special in shape and size. Squid species are very agile and only the beaks are strong.Octopus has a two-park beak, also called a rostrum, which is found in the buccal mass and is covered by the muscular arms. Behind the sharp beak, we have the octopus salivary gland where the poison is known to be produced and released to the prey via the beak. The beak itself is strong enough to break the shell of a clam or tear the flesh apart of the prey. Octopuses eat themselves even when stressed. The barbed tongue called radula is also present.There have been many cases of catching colossal squid in the wild. Sperm whales eat large species of squids for breakfast. The beaks of the squids are left behind in the stomach as the rest of the squid tissue of the larger colossal squid to smaller colossal squid is left behind in stranded sperm whales.What do octopuses use their beaks for?Octopus beaks are very strong and can tear apart the flesh of their prey or small fish. Many octopus species have been found in the world that corroborates this fact.All octopuses have venom but we probably have just heard about the blue-ringed octopus. Most octopuses are not lethal to humans, although all have the poison gland. Octopus uses its beak to tear the flesh of fish and other crustaceans. The sharp beaks are common with the cephalopod groups and are as sharp as a swiss army knife. The octopus is a meat-eating carnivore with all those tentacles with suction cups. However, the beaks are the highlights as they can easily break through lobster shells to eat the flesh within.Octopus Beak Facts An octopus beak is a deadly tool for the species. The beak of an octopus is capable of attacking the prey with painful bites (reportedly seen in the woman who put an octopus on her head).The radula located between the beak and the poison gland is very important as it is used to take out the meat from the prey’s shell. Below the radula, we see the salivary papilla which is muscular and the frontal side of it is covered in small teeth. The upper beak and the lower ones have two components - the outer layer, also called the hood, and the inner layer, known as the wall. They are held together by the bridge and shoulder. The beaks are so strong that they behave like cutting scissors that can easily get clams open.Octopus Beak Strength Octopus beaks are strong enough to break apart the shells of the strongest of species and that tells you how strong they are.Large specimens and smaller specimen of both squids and octopuses have been researched to see the strength of the beaks in these species. They are the lethal weapon octopuses possess that can kill anything, even birds. The tentacles eight in number can also be considered lethal weapons used to grab the prey.Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for do octopuses have beaks, then why not take a look at do octopuses ink or octopus facts pages?
The octopus is a member of the family of cephalopods which means ‘head foot’ in Greek.
