Except in this case, its most distinguishing characteristic is just how darn cute it is.

Stephanie Bush, a postdoctoral fellow at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, said her team is working on putting together a formal scientific description of the species. The team who puts together the description also gets to name it.

“One of the thoughts I had was making it Opisthoteuthis Adorabilis – because it’s really cute,” Bush said.

The octopus has been described as a cross between a Pac-Man ghost and a Pokemon creature.

It’s also related to the pink “flapjack” octopus in the movie, “Finding Nemo.”

So it’s only a matter of time before Adorabilis is ready for its close-up.

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Amy Bielawski, who runs Hare-Brained Productions, prepares to work at a Fall Festival in Stone Mountain on Oct. 4, 2025. Bielawski is worried she may not be able to afford health care through Georgia Access when subsidies expire. (Arvin Temkar/AJC)

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC