Cephalopod cognition

Alexandra K Schnell; Nicola S Clayton

doi:10.1016/j.cub.2019.06.049

Cephalopod cognition

Curr Biol. 2019 Aug 5;29(15):R726-R732. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2019.06.049.

Authors

Alexandra K Schnell¹, Nicola S Clayton²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, CB2 3DT, UK. Electronic address: alex.k.schnell@gmail.com.
² Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, CB2 3DT, UK.

PMID: 31386844
DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2019.06.049

Abstract

Cephalopods have captivated the minds of scientists for thousands of years, dating back to approximately 330 BC when Aristotle became fascinated by their ability to rapidly change colour. This remarkable ability, however, is not the only aspect of cephalopod behaviour that has garnered attention from the scientific community. The soft-bodied cephalopods (henceforth cephalopods), namely octopus, cuttlefish, and squid, are widely considered to be the most cognitively advanced group of invertebrates. They possess highly developed perceptual, memory, and spatial learning abilities and are also capable of intriguing feats of behaviour that appear to indicate complex cognition.

MeSH terms

Animals
Cognition*
Decapodiformes / physiology*
Memory
Octopodiformes / physiology*
Perception
Spatial Learning