Octopus

The octopus is common in the eastern Atlantic as far north as the Channel Islands. It is especially common, and highly prized, in the north of Spain. ‘Plagues’ of the species descend on the southern coasts of England from time to time; plagues in inverted commas because, according to me, a supply of octopus is a blessing, although not yet so perceived by British fishermen, whose lobster-pots and crab-pots it empties. Further north, the octopus seems to be rare or absent. It is also absent from the eastern seaboard of North America, although one species sometimes strays as far north as the Carolinas. Otherwise North Americans must rely on imports or on supplies from the Pacific coast.