Aquarists at Hastings’ Blue Reef Aquarium have picked a winning name for their newly-arrived Giant Pacific Octopus after a hugely popular visitor competition.
The Rock-a-Nore Road wildlife attraction invited youngsters to choose a suitable name for the eight-legged creature and ran the competition for the entirety of November.
They received close to 70 suggestions and have spent the past few days sifting through entries before picking the winner.
After much debate, they opted for ‘Maxwell’, suggested by six-year-old Maxwell Haffenden, from Rye Harbour.
Blue Reef’s Leanna Lawson said: “We were delighted with the response we got from people and the number of names they came up with.
“It was really difficult to pick an overall winner but in the end, we all agreed on the name which we felt suited the octopus the most.”
Other names considered included Otto, Inky Dave, Moby and Ringo.
As well as having the octopus named in his honour, Maxwell will also receive a free family ticket to visit the aquarium.
The Giant Pacific Octopus is the world’s largest species of octopus and is found from Japan to Southern California. The biggest recorded specimen had an arm span of 10 metres (33ft) and weighed 270kgs (600lbs).
As well as being the largest, the Giant Pacific is also among the cleverest members of the cephalopod family.
Despite its intelligence, the Giant Pacific Octopus has a relatively short life span, going from the size of a rice grain at birth to being fully grown within the space of two years.
Issued by Blue Reef Aquarium. For more information and to arrange interviews, picture or filming opportunities please contact Leanna Lawson or on 01424 718776.