We located a single Graneledone octopus specimen stationed beside a soft coral colony, in a posture consistent with egg-brooding behavior — though we could not visually confirm an egg clutch without disturbing the animal, which we chose not to do.
Deep-sea octopus brooding periods can run for years, with the mother fasting the entire time. If this is a brooding female, disturbing her position even briefly could be costly, so our entire observation window was limited to nine minutes at a respectful distance before withdrawing the ROV.
We’ve flagged the site for a non-disruptive remote camera placement on a future expedition, aiming to document the brooding period without repeat physical ROV visits.