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Squid, Octopus and Nautilus (Cephalopod Group)

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Kingdom Phylum Class

Animals > No Backbone (Invertebrate) > Squid, Octopus and Nautilus (Cephalopod)

Where They Live (Range and Habitat): Squid, Octopus and Nautilus live in the ocean.

What Their Body is Like (Anatomy): The Squid, Octopus and Nautilus have a number of arms or tentacles that circle their “head.” Each arm has two rows of suction cups.

The octopus has eight arms. Squid have both arms and tentacles.

The Squid, Octopus and Nautilus have a brain and eyes with good, color vision.
They are thought to be smart and able can learn from experience.

The Squid and octopus have a funnel structure, called a hyponome. They can blow water through their funnel to move through the water quickly.

Many in this group have ink. They release it into the water if they are startled.
They can also change color to blend in (camouflage) and escape predators.

The nautilus has a shell to protect it.

Squid have a skeleton.

The Octopus has neither.

What They Eat: The Squid, Octopus and Nautilus are predators. They use their arms (or tentacles) to trap prey, and a sharp beak to bite prey. They then stuff prey into their central mouth.

To learn more about the octopus: LINK
To color an octopus: LINK
To label the parts of an octopus: LINK
To learn more about squid go to: LINK
To color a squid: LINK
To label the parts of a squid: LINK

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Squid, Octopus and Nautilus (Cephalopod Group)

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