Classification
The genus was described by British zoologist Guy Coburn Robson in 1929. There are three confirmed species of Hapalochlaena, and a fourth is still being researched:
- Greater blue-ringed octopus (Hapalochlaena lunulata)
- Southern blue-ringed octopus or Lesser Blue-ringed Octopus (Hapalochlaena maculosa)
- Blue-lined octopus (Hapalochlaena fasciata)
- Hapalochlaena nierstraszi - described in 1938 from a single specimen from the Bay of Bengal; the validity of this taxon has been questioned.
Read more about this topic: Blue-ringed Octopus