Most octopuses move by sucking water in and jetting it back out, or by crawling along the seafloor with their arms. Not the dumbo octopus. It has a completely different design.
On top of its body sit two large round fins shaped like the floppy ears of Disney’s Dumbo the elephant - which is how it got its name. The dumbo octopus flaps these fins gently to “fly” through the deep water, gliding more like a stingray than a normal octopus. It’s slow and graceful, perfect for the calm, cold abyss it calls home.
Dumbos live deeper than any other octopuses - between 1,000 and 7,000 meters down. They’re rarely seen, even by deep-sea cameras, but every now and then a submersible drifts past one. Most are about the size of a grapefruit, making them some of the smallest octopuses too.
