On ecstasy, octopuses reached out for hug

Octopuses are smart. They open jars, steal fish and give high-fives.

Though interactive, they’re generally asocial and temperamental, with unique behavior patterns. They learn through experience and observation, forming lasting memories with hundreds of millions of neurons in each arm and a centralized bundle in the middle.

A desire to understand the evolutionary underpinnings of this brain power led scientists to give octopuses ecstasy — yes, the party drug that reduces humans’ fear and inhibition, induces feelings of empathy and helps people dance to electronic music all night.

Under the influence of MDMA, the researchers report in a paper published Thursday in Current Biology, asocial octopuses seemed to become more social.

“Even though octopuses look like they come from outer space, they’re actually not that different from us,” said neuroscientist Gül Dölen, who led the study with octopus researcher Eric Edsinger.

They found humans and octopuses share parts of an ancient messaging system involved in social behaviors, one enhanced by the presence of MDMA in both animals.

They put the octopuses in the center of a three-chambered tank where they could explore a Star Wars figurine on one side or another octopus on the other.

Undosed, octopuses of either sex spent more time with the toy than the other octopus (if it was a male; they seemed less concerned when it was female).

But after soaking in low-dose MDMA-laced baths, the octopuses seemed to relax. They spent more time with the male octopuses on the other side of the tank.

They also hugged the pot with several arms, showing off their ventral ends, or mouths.

When the octopuses came down from their serotonin highs, each acted completely normal — for an octopus, Dölen said.