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Beautiful but deadly
Keep an eye out for octopus in Kiama’s rockpools
Photos: Scott Gutterson
Danielle Woolage
F
or years Scott Gutterson has been patiently waiting for his Moby Dick moment - an up-close sighting of the beautiful but deadly blue-lined octopus. Gutterson was in Kiama Rockpool, camera gear at the ready, taking advantage of the crystal clear water. Capturing footage of the amazing array of creatures that live below the surface is
all part of his daily saltwater therapy. “I was actually going in to capture a few photos of the gloomy octopus in the rockpool and this guy was cruising the bottom looking for food,” Gutterson said. A member of the deadly blue-ringed octopus family, the shy mollusc is roughly the size of a 50-cent coin. So when Gutterson spotted the blue-lined octopus less than 30cm from his foot he felt
no fear, just elation. “I reckon it’s pretty rare for anyone to step on an octopus, especially a blue-ringed or blue-lined octopus, they are so small and timid and move so fast,” he explained. “So even if its arms come out and touch you, they actually have to use their beak to bite and release toxins. I think you have to be very unlucky if you’re bitten because they’re not going to bite unless they feel threatened.”
The encounter was “a real unicorn moment” for the keen underwater snapper. Since moving to Gerringong from Toowoomba in 2017, he has made it his mission to swim in the ocean daily. The former Navy helicopter pilot joined the Werri Point Swimmers when he retired from the military after almost three decades of service. “I’m really kicking myself for not starting ocean swimming earlier,” he said.
“I’ve travelled all over with the Navy - the Middle East and the Red Sea, all these beautiful places where I’d love to have been swimming or free diving. But at least I feel like I’m making up for lost time now.” The ocean is his happy place - it’s where he found his sense of community and met some of his closest friends, both human and marine. Last year he formed a special bond with a gloomy octopus he discovered in Kiama
rockpool. He named her Roxy and for almost 10 months he would visit her every day. “Some days it was pouring down rain, freezing cold, but I’d go down there just to see how she was doing,” he recalled. The gloomy octopus (octopus tetricus) is a species known for its intelligence and named for its sad-looking eyes. But Roxy was far from downcast. “She knew who I -Continued on Page 2