Curled Octopus
Eledone cirrhosa
The curled octopus, also known as the horned octopus, lesser octopus or northern octopus, is a species of cephalopod found in the northeast Atlantic, ranging from Norway to the Mediterranean, including the British Isles. The total length of an adult is around 50 cm, but their arms are often tightly curled.
21
Countries
Photo: Wikimedia Commons (CC) via https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curled_octopus
Taxonomy & Classification
Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Mollusca
Class
Cephalopoda
Order
Octopoda
Family
Eledonidae
Genus
Eledone
Curled Octopus belongs to the family Eledonidae, order Octopoda, within the Cephalopoda class.
Species Profile
The curled octopus, also known as the horned octopus, lesser octopus or northern octopus, is a species of cephalopod found in the northeast Atlantic, ranging from Norway to the Mediterranean, including the British Isles. The total length of an adult is around 50 cm, but their arms are often tightly curled. It immobilises and eats large crustaceans by drilling a hole through their shell. It is mainly by-catch in commercial fisheries of the north eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean, where the common octopus is the preferred species.
The Curled Octopus faces significant population declines primarily due to intensive commercial fishing pressure and habitat degradation in coastal waters. Overfishing has reduced prey availability while bottom trawling activities destroy critical benthic habitats where this species forages and shelters.
Key Facts
Habitat & Distribution
The curled octopus is mainly found at depths between and may occur down to . It lives in the northeast Atlantic Ocean, including the English Channel, the North Sea, and the Mediterranean Sea. In recent years the North Sea populations have increased, probably due to overfishing of large predatory fish such as Atlantic cod. This has had an effect on crab and lobster fisheries as the curled octopus...
Threats
IUCN Red List: Endangered
The Curled Octopus faces significant population declines primarily due to intensive commercial fishing pressure and habitat degradation in coastal waters. Overfishing has reduced prey availability while bottom trawling activities destroy critical benthic habitats where this species forages and shelters.
Bottom trawling habitat destruction
Commercial overfishing and bycatch mortality
Climate change and ocean warming
Coastal pollution and water quality degradation
Prey depletion from ecosystem disruption
Found in 21 Countries
Community Sightings
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Sources & Attribution
How to Cite
IUCN: IUCN (2025). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2025-1. Available at: https://www.iucnredlist.org. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2025-1.RLTS
GBIF: GBIF.org (2025). GBIF Home Page. Available at: https://www.gbif.org
This page: SpeciesRadar (2025). Curled Octopus (Eledone cirrhosa). SpeciesRadar: Intelligence for Earth's Biodiversity. Available at: https://speciesradar.org/species/curled-octopus