HOW INTELLIGENT IS AN OCTOPUS?

HOW INTELLIGENT IS AN OCTOPUS? I see from the search feature that I have posted five times before about octopuses, including this post on the personality of the octopus—which can be analyzed in terms of extraversion (versus shyness); neuroticism (anxiety); agreeableness; and openness to experience. I recently posted here about a video of an octopus using a coconut shell as a tool. This article addresses the question of how intelligent an octopus is. The answer: “Turns out, on a scale of one to chimpanzee, octopuses are probably somewhere close to matching wits with a dog.” The article gives an evolutionary reason for octopus intelligence. Octopuses don’t have shells and are fair game for predators so dumb octopuses have less chance of surviving. As for the use of the coconut shell, there is a difference of opinion as to whether that constitutes the use of a tool. Octopuses have been known to pile up rocks as a protective fence outside an opening to a shelter, but, again, whether that is the use of a tool depends on the definition. But octopuses do play, a sign of intelligence. I have to say that, although octopuses are smarter than I had thought, I’d bet on the dog in a battle of wits.