Description

Keuppia levante
Other Mollusc
Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian)
Metoicoceras geslinianum Zone
Hadjoula, Lebanon

Extremely rare 21mm true octopus on 60mm slab. Ink sac, jaws and tentacles are clearly visible.

Cephalopod. Soft-bodied. Mollusc. Lagerstatten.

Keuppia is an extinct genus of octopus known so far only from the Late Cretaceous of Lebanon. It’s quite similar to modern forms with features such as the suckers and ink sac having been identified in the few known specimens.

The octopus has a long evolutionary history with a possible ancestor dating back to the Carboniferous. It’s a miracle that any specimens exist as it lacks the shell or guard of other cephalopods but specimens have been collected where other soft-bodied marine animals are preserved.

We see so many weird soft-bodied animals but this is one of the most astonishing things we’ve ever had. Wow, that’s a freaking octopus!