Exhibition "A Pop of Gram"

After four months of follow-up dives in the pots, the biologists have observed, inside the shelters, a total of 43 octopuses in l’Escala and 23 in l’Estartit. As the dives continued, the presence of octopuses in the pots tended to increase. All of them, however, of medium and small size. No adult octopuses were observed during the study and no spawning.

On the other hand, with the analysis of food scraps collected, they have been able to verify that the Roses and Pals octopus maintains a diet dominated by clams and, to a lesser extent, crabs and snails.

Absence of adult octopuses

After four months of follow-up dives, it has been verified that 80% of the pots in the two bays have been used at some point by octopuses, meaning that food remains have been found. They have also determined an upward trend in the number of octopuses in the pots. In l’Escala, a total of 43 octopus specimens have been witnessed, mostly of medium size, while in l’Estartit they have located 23 of small and medium size. No adult specimen has been observed during the course of the project and no spawning has taken place between the months of June and September. Thus, both in l’Escala and l’Estartit the octopuses found in the pots were young. It has also been possible to verify that octopuses do not have a preference for a certain size of pots.

A varied diet

Food samples collected both inside and around the shelters have allowed a better definition of the octopus’s diet in the Empordà bays. In total, 1,824 remains were analysed, of which 54% were from Estartit and 46%  of the Scale. In the Bay of Roses, 52 different species have been found among the food scraps collected, and 60 in Pals, among which 35 species of clams, 15 of crabs and 10 of snails have been identified. Some remains of fish spines have also been observed. 

In addition, after analyzing the remains, it has been determined that the small-sized octopuses have a more varied diet and are more active when eating, that is, they accumulate more remains, than the medium-sized ones .

Consult report