Venomous blue-ringed octopus spotted in Boljoon, Cebu

Screencap from GMA Integrated News/YouTube

A netizen and her child in Boljoon, Cebu, couldn't help but marvel at an octopus with vibrant blue rings.

According to Kuya Kim on "24 Oras," Thursday, the woman's child also touched the octopus, as seen in a video she posted online.

While the mother and child were unharmed, concern swarmed the two as the octopus in the video was identified as a deadly blue-ringed octopus, the venom of which could paralyze and kill humans.

Marine biologist Mylene Sadagnot confirmed in the report that the octopus in the video was indeed a blue-ringed octopus.

These octopuses are small and docile. When threatened by predators, however, they camouflage or show their vibrant blue rings which produce a neurotoxin called tetrodotoxin.

"An average [blue-ringed] octopus can have a venom that can kill an equivalent or an average of about 20 to 26 adult humans," said Sadagnot. "It's only when it felt threatened or when you corner it, it will attack."

Sadagnot has cautioned the public not to get close to these blue-ringed octopuses and to only admire them from afar.

"Appreciate its beauty at a distance, but do not initiate the organism to show its blue color because it's an organism that can literally pose a problem for our health. This is especially true for kids," she advised.

— CDC, GMA Integrated News

This article Venomous blue-ringed octopus spotted in Boljoon, Cebu was originally published in GMA News Online.