Sculpture Information

Female Argonauts or Octopi secrete calcium carbonate and create these wonderful egg cases. The female Argonaut is eight times larger than the male. Once they have mated, the male escapes, and the female keeps the baby Argonauts inside the egg case. The egg case traps an air pocket and floats. They were named Argonauts as they thought the flaps on their tentacles were sails!!!

It was originally believed that the female Argonauts or Octopi adopted egg cases abandoned by other organisms. But in her research the marine biologist Jeanne Villepreux-Power observed the cases being formed by the secretion of calcium carbonate from the female Argonaut. She was a pioneer and inventor of the glass aquarium for the study of marine life. The female argonaut is eight times larger than the male. Once they have mated, the male escapes, and the female keeps the baby Argonauts inside the egg case and traps an air pocket to become buoyant. They were named Argonauts as they thought the flaps on their tentacles were sails – named after the heroes who sailed with Jason on the Argo.