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First sightings of mimic octopus Thaumoctopus mimicus (Cephalopoda: Octopodidia) from the Southwest Indian Ocean with photographic records from the Inhambane Province of southern Mozambique
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 15 March 2024
Abstract
Two separate sightings, two years apart, of the mimic octopus Thaumoctopus mimicus Norman & Hochberg, 2005 are reported from the Inhambane Province of southern Mozambique within the protected waters of the Vilanculos Coastal Wildlife Sanctuary. Individuals were encountered in May 2020 and 2022 in shallow waters, at a depth of less than 30 cm. Both individuals were fully exposed moving along a sandy substrate at the water's edge in a tidal flat. These represent the first documented sightings of T. mimicus in Mozambique, confirming the occurrence of the species along the eastern coast of Africa and extending this species' known range west from the Arabian Sea and south from the Red Sea.
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- Marine Record
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- Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom
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