Two divers experienced a rare, close-up experience with an octopus, which briefly borrowed the camera and filmed itself in Nanoose Bay.
Although Madrona Point is known as a good place to spot a giant Pacific octopus, John Roney and Chris Mullen never expected a gentle tentacle hug, when they made the trip from Victoria.
Roney, who has been diving since 2016, said the animals are intelligent and curious about their environment.
“It wrapped its entire body around the camera and I just thought I’d let it go and see what happens,” he said. “I think it was a matter of something different in its world that it really wanted to investigate.”
The octopus, which Roney estimated was roughly three metres in size, from arm tip to arm tip, carried around Roney’s camera for about five minutes, while the two divers gave it some space.
When it let go of the camera, they figured the encounter was over, but instead it headed for Mullen and gripped his camera.
“He decided to hold on (to the camera) and it ended up giving him a proper octopus hug,” said Roney, who went to check on his friend and realized the cephalopod was not holding on tight – merely exploring and feeling.
Roney described the experience overall as a “thrilling” experience, rather than scary.
“It’s such a powerful animal and you’ve really got to respect the power of these animals. I think because we were giving it its space and not provoking it in any way,” he added. “It’s definitely nerve-wracking when you’ve got your camera completely engulfed by an octopus.”
Mostly, he was excited and eager to check out the footage the octopus had shot, which he pointed out is a great illustration of how smart the animals are.
READ MORE: Deep-sea octopus garden nursery discovered beneath B.C. waves
Roney spent some time living in Parksville and has been familiar with Madrona Point for some time. He said the area is habitat for both the giant Pacific octopus, as well as its smaller but very similar in appearance cousin, the ruby octopus.
“These are for the most part really curious and friendly animals,” he added. “We got the most incredible moment that nobody could have expected.”
Roney is a underwater wildlife videographer, as well as a documentary film and television editor, with some of his work posted to Instagram at @roneydives.
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