#cephalopods

#cephalopods

Its long neck allowed its head to get a head start on its body, says the museum's exhibition and interpretation manager. So it could sneak up on prey and grab it [with its mouth] before its body and flippers created a disturbance in the water.

Many animals use deception to get what they want. Most of these sneaky tactics are instinctual; however, a few creatures engage in tactical deception: They adapt their tricks depending on their goal or audience. Tactical deception involves some sophisticated cognition, and research on the phenomenon often focuses on primates or brainy birds like corvids. Recently, scientists suggested that a different group of animals may be ideal for the study of tactical deception: cephalopods.