Bart Bear's Blog

There is a big cuttlefish in the aquarium at Coffs Harbour. Blu had never seen a cuttle before and was really happy to find out that you can actually talk to them. Cuttlefish can change the colours of their skin. That helps them camouflage themselves when they are hiding or hunting, but it is also one of the ways that they communicate with other cuttlefish. They are also willing to communicate with small bears. Evidently this guy had never seen small bears before and was just as fascinated by us as we were with him. To talk with cuttles you use your hands and arms (and fingers if you have them). Waving them at the cuttlefish looks like you are waving your tentacles at him. He will wave back to you, but also flash different colours on his skin. I guess most of the time he is saying "What are you trying to say? Use colours idiots". One colour signal was very clear. He responded to noisy kids tapping his tank by flashing black and spreading his tentacles wide. That obviously means "Shut up and go away or I'll bite". Blu and I had a nice chat with him and will visit him again when we are next at Coffs.

Labels: fish, New South Wales, north coast