Shark Interrupts Giant Cuttlefish Orgy – A Dirty Cuttlefish Documentary

Imagine accidentally stumbling onto a scene from Blue Planet II.. It would probably look something like this. This stunning reef scene on the outer edge of the Great Barrier Reef was covered with Giant Cuttlefish, all looking to do the deed and find a mate.

Here we were, on a Coral Research Project on the outer reef filming for the National Gallery of Victoria’s Triennial Exhibition when we stumbled onto a pretty idyllic patch of Staghorn Coral. We had absolutely no idea what we were swimming into, and were actually pretty excited when we spotted the first Giant Cuttlefish. It didn’t take us long to realise what was going on, as droves of them started pouring in and meeting on top of the coral boulder/bommie shown in the video.

This was honestly mindblowing to watch. The first two Giant Cuttlefish met atop the coral boulder and with only seconds of each Cuttlefish flashing their skin and pulsating vibrant colours and textures they were off and at it. Giant Cuttlefish mate mouth to mouth and tentacle to tentacle. In an ever vibrant display as each Giant Cuttlefish continues to pulsate different colours.

Once the first pair had met, this seemed to stir up a lot of testosterone among the other males, with a number of sneaker males chasing and hunting female Cuttlefish.

The action attracted a very curious Grey Reef Shark, who was clearly scouting the area after sensing the Cuttlefish action. It’s difficult to see on the video, but he was on a mission! Funnily enough, the second he showed up all of the Cuttlefish ceased their extra curricular activities and entered hiding. They left the top of the coral bommie, and hung down low around the sand using the coral for protection. And as soon as the shark left, they were back at it and headed straight back (weirdly) to the top of the coral boulder/bommie.

This was a breathtaking scuba dive and is easily one of the most incredible wildlife interactions i’ve witnessed!

Really hope you enjoy the Mini Documentary! There’s plenty more on my page including one all about the Giant Cuttlefish if you wish to learn about them!