NEW YORK: Octopuses:They’re the slightly terrifying, two-eyed, eight-armed sea creatures you probably don’t know much about.
I mean, who among us hasn’t wondered: What is an octopus, even?
That’s okay, because science is just starting to really figure them out, too.
I’m not here to answer all of your questions — just this one: How are these creatures able to famously change the color, pattern and texture of their skin to camouflage themselves in response to their environment?
A new study from researchers at the University of California at Santa Barbara sheds light (pun intended) on that very question.
It turns out that despite the fact that octopuses have eyes and brains (which they actually put to good use) — not to mention several hearts — they actually don’t need to use those to sense changes in light around them.
Their skin tissue can do that all on their own.