The silent genius

When the octopus only speaks with colour

You don’t see it. You only see… something. A stone? Algae? A shadow, perhaps?

And then – the rock moves. It twitches slightly, suddenly changes colour – from grey to brown, from a dotted pattern to smooth. And you realise: it’s an octopus. Right in front of you. Perfectly camouflaged. Perfectly placed. And now that you see it, you can’t look away.

Communication without words

Octopuses do not communicate with sounds. They do not snap at corals, they do not click, they do not crunch. They communicate with colour. With shape. With behaviour.

They pump themselves up when they want to look big. They turn pale when they need rest. And when they watch you (yes, they do!), their body changes colour almost every minute.

It’s as if they want to say to you: “I see you. And I decide whether you can see me.“

A moment that lasts

We recently went diving at our house reef at Golden Blocks early in the morning. The water was crystal clear, the light soft, and there was hardly any movement in the reef.

Our diving group was floating above a small canyon when suddenly our guide pointed slowly to the left. A small cave entrance – and inside it, an octopus. Cuddled up, but visible.

As we got closer, it changed colour three times. First smooth, then speckled, then almost transparent. No frantic diving, no escape behaviour. It watched us. And we watched it.

Three minutes. Not a sound. Just this silent understanding. And after the dive, everyone in the group said, “That was my highlight.“

When intelligence has tentacles

Octopuses are considered the most intelligent invertebrates in the world. They open screw caps, escape from aquariums, and remember who has disturbed them – and who hasn’t.

And they do something that hardly any other animal can do: they seem to think.

If you’re lucky, you’ll see it. How they look at you, then glide back into the reef. Very slowly. As if they wanted to say: “It’s nice that you’re here – but don’t overdo it.“

And then… suddenly she’s there

You continue diving. Still completely caught up in this silent dialogue with the octopus.

And suddenly you see a completely different presence – large, leisurely, calm: our turtle.

Right by the house reef. Triple Pools, Golden Blocks, Laguna – she has been seen almost everywhere. She glides along slowly, often close to the sandy bottom, always searching for her favourite seaweed.

She doesn’t speak. She doesn’t change colours. But she makes it clear: I’ve got time. And this is my territory.

Our recommendation

Encounters with octopuses are rare – but magical. And if you also meet our turtle, you will have seen two masters of silence in one day.

One flees. The other stays. Both show that underwater, magic often happens very quietly.

You just have to be willing to look.

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Facts about octopuses