FORGET BARRY, MEET KILLER LARRY: Video shows giant octopus almost strangling diver with its tentacles
BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA: A video shows the terrifying moment an octopus nearly strangled a diver 40 feet below the water. The incident occurred when divers Michael Marcotte and Stuart Seldon were searching for an octopus in Canadian waters in October 2022 and encountered an orange, eight-legged creature called Larry, the giant Pacific octopus (GPO), northeast of Port Hardy in the lower Queen Charlotte Strait.
One of the divers, Michael Marcotte, owner of WetRock, a Canadian fishing and private tour company, described the incident, "While diving on the Browning wall my buddy Stuart Seldon and I got separated upon descent due to the rushing tides. When I descended to about 40 I began searching for octopus in the cracks and crevices along the wall, that was teaming with anemones, soft corals, crustaceans, and countless examples of unique marine life. Not far from me, perhaps fifty yards away, was Stu with his camera at a similar depth," Daily Mail reports. "As he descended, he saw a GPO on the wall. As he hovered motionless in front of this incredible creature, he began to set up his camera to take a shot, hoping I would soon join him. As he began to take the photos, the GPO jumped onto his camera and wrapped some of its tendrils around Stu's neck, limbs and torso," he added.
READ MORE
Octopus gets its revenge on woman live streaming herself trying to eat the sea creature alive
'He began to take interest in my GoPro'
Sharing the details, Marcotte said, "In a feeble manner my buddy Stu decided to swim as best he could to show me the GPO I would name Larry. As I looked up from the wall I saw my buddy in an upright stance with an amused if not stunned and confused look upon his countenance. At first, I had no idea what I was looking at. A large amber plastic bag, perhaps an old set of bagpipes abandoned at sea, 'Oh my god a GPO!' I remembered my GoPro was clipped off on one of my D-rings and so I began to film this abstract visage before me. Soon afterward Larry, the GPO, lost interest and swam back to the wall and began searching for a new perch. As I filmed the majestic movement of this beautiful beast he began to take an interest in my GoPro, almost attempting to snatch it from my hands but perhaps he had had enough camera candy for the moment."
'A memorable dive'
The footage only captured the last few moments of the octopus around Stu. He said, "After a brief photo shoot with Larry and I by Stu, I began to see bubbles from different depths so I swam off to notify my fellow divers of this wonderful wild creature above. While I was away swimming, Stu continued to document Larry, the mollusk with eight limbs. Once I notified everyone I returned to a cluster of cameras and swam on to find new creatures and crustaceans along the wall in an ebbing flow. Upon surfacing I found out that Larry had lunged onto two other cameras held by two fellow divers. It was a memorable dive that will remain forever fixed in my brain."
The video was reported after an Australian man and his dog had a run-in with a deadly blue-ringed octopus, reports New York Post. Jesse Donnison and his dog Otto were walking along Blackwattle Bay in Glebe when he spotted what looked like a toy but turned out to be a blue-ringed octopus. The man said, “As soon as that tentacle came out, I knew there was only one creature it could be. I dropped it pretty quickly, more than anything I was worried about the dog. Otto tried to get onto the ball immediately. Lucky I even looked and didn’t just chuck it for the dog to go and grab.”