An octopus that unscrews a jar lid after watching a fellow octopus do it: the image is appealing, and it spreads widely. Yet the experiments behind it tell a much more nuanced story.
Publicité
Publicité
In 1992, two Italian researchers showed octopuses trained companions choosing between two objects that differed only in colour. Placed alone afterwards, the observers consistently chose the same object as the demonstrators. The task was therefore a visual choice, not a jar to open.
Jar-opening is real, however. One octopus can pull the plastic stopper off a glass jar holding a live crab. According to the authors, its improvement is explained by trial and error, without watching another animal. A 1994 conference abstract describes copying after two attempts, but it was never a full peer-reviewed article.
The debate remains open, and the studies are few and small. It is wise to stay cautious before speaking of social learning in these animals.
