Octopus strangles diver, sprays blinding ink in his face

Terrifying footage shows the moment an octopus latches onto a snorkeller and sprays blinding ink in his face after its home was disturbed.

This is the terrifying moment an aggressive octopus latches onto a snorkeller and nearly strangles him after its home was disturbed.

Viral footage showed the eight-limbed creature in a nightmare scenario with a terrified diver off the coast of far eastern Russia.

The diver had used a pole to poke the octopus’s burrow, before the sea creature hit back by shooting a cloud of ink and latching onto the diver’s hands.

The incident – which occurred near Primorsky Krai, Russia, earlier this month – then escalated as the snorkeller realised he could not detach from the tough marine mollusc.

Octopus nearly strangles a snorkeller. Picture: X

He struggled to pull the octopus off, which only made the sea animal tighten its grip and go for the man’s neck.

Its blinding ink continued to spread, further confusing the dumbfounded diver.

Panicking, the frightened man then tried to rip the octopus off himself, which had stuck on using its extremely strong suction cups.

The incident occurred in far eastern Russia. Picture: X

When the diver realised he wasn’t getting anywhere with just his strength, he started to swim upwards for air.

After quickly swimming upwards and trying to pull the animal off, the diver eventually reached the sea surface, where he gasped desperately for air.

But even then, the creature was latched on, using its whole body to cover the mans upper torso and lower half of his face.

The creature attacked after the diver poked its home with a stick. Picture: X

The octopus was identified as a common octopus. Picture: X

According to local media, he was able to release the octopus from his body several minutes later.

It is unclear however, whether the diver sustained any serious injuries.

The octopus in the video is believed to be a common octopus, which is not known to be dangerous to humans.

Also known as an octopus vulgaris, they do not pose danger to humans. Picture: X

They can grow up to 1.3 metres in length, and can weigh between 3kg and 10kg, according to National Geographic.

The mollusc does classify as poisonous, but its venom is not lethal.

The dramatic video received over 3 million views on Instagram, but many social media users argued the diver provoked the attack.

“Good lesson taught, let’s leave them in peace,” one user wrote.

Another said: “Respect the ocean, dude. Also, it seems that the diver p****d off the cameraperson too. He just shot the whole thing without helping him.”

The common octopus, also referred to as the octopus vulgaris, is easily identifiable and known for its ability to camouflage itself to match colours of its surroundings.

It is also a fast swimmer and can squeeze itself into tiny cracks or shapes.

This article originally appeared on The Sun and was reproduced with permission