Octopus boom off the Cornish coast ‘is biggest in seven decades’

Fishermen are sighting growing numbers of the sea creatures that are ending up in lobster pots

CORNWALL is experiencing a boom in the population of the common octopus not seen for 70 years, with fishermen reporting dozens of sightings a day.

They are said to be consuming large amounts of lobster and cuttlefish, leaving fishermen hauling up the sea creatures instead.

There is a strong European market for the muscular mollusc, especially in Spain and Portugal where it is a delicacy, but the sudden surge in numbers means British consumers may find octopus legs easier to come by than their usual Friday night favourites.

During the previous octopus explosions, the ocean predators were seen as a plague devouring fishermen’s traditional catches, said Matt Slater of the Cornwall Wildlife Trust (CWT).

Now, with healthy European demand for octopus, the fishermen are more relaxed. “Octopuses are amazing, intelligent animals, they can get into the pots, eat the crustaceans and leave,” said Mr Slater. “But a lot of them fall asleep and then get caught so there are large numbers that are coming up in the pots.” The common octopus is usually rare in British waters as they typically prefer warmer Mediterranean climes.

The CWT receives reports of just two sightings a year on average for the mollusc. Now they say one fisherman reported catching 150 in a single day, with sightings spread all along the south Cornish coast.

This would not be the first time octopus numbers have ballooned in British waters. Records show similar events in 1899 and 1948, although the CWT is not yet labelling this a boom of similar proportions.

“There were octopuses being caught all up the south coast of England from Land’s End to Brighton in 1948,” said Mr Slater.

He said the trust was calling on the public to help count the molluscs – already spotted in Devon and Dorset – to better determine if this was just a small spike or a full-blown population explosion.

Mr Slater said that although octopuses usually lay an enormous number of eggs – between 100,000 and 500,000 at a time – the vast majority do not survive, meaning that the population remains stable.

“But occasionally, if conditions are good and stars align, there’s plentiful food and lack of predation, you’ll find you get a really successful survival rate.

“And I think that’s what’s happened here,” he added.