This is a culminating moment in the lives of these octopus. The male is transferring a packet of sperm to a pouch beneath the mantle of the female. The female will keep the packet until she lays her eggs, whereupon she will use the sperm to fertilize each egg. The male will die shortly after this transfer, and the female will die shortly after her eggs hatch.
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Mating Octopus (Octopus vulgaris)
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