Scientists found that the male’s hectocotylus, the specialized arm for mating, is lined with receptors that can sense ...

How do octopuses mate in the dark? A new study shows how the hectocotylus arm uses progesterone receptors to "taste" for a mate.

In lieu of a penis, the male has a special mating arm called a hectocotylus. In a new study published today in Science, researchers show that the male octopus’s mating arm can sense a female’s sex ...

The hectocotylus is both a reproductive and sensory organ, Harvard scientists and others have found. Octopuses are some of the most mysterious animals living in the sea. In research out today, however ...

Life in the ocean is perilous, and 78% of the captured octopuses were missing at least one arm due to encounters with ...

When the scientists paired two male octopuses in the same setup, the males interacted by touching arms, but they never ...

It has been confirmed that octopuses can mate if their arms are within reach, even without seeing each other. This is because a male octopus's specialized "mating arm" can chemically recognize a femal ...

Octopus mating behaviors can be quite deadly. Many species are cannibalistic, making the entire prospect of mating dangerous, and female octopuses often die after laying one clutch of eggs. Their ...

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. A California two-spot octopus (Octopus bimaculoides). David Liittschwager, National Geographic Image Collection The California two ...