Octopus Coloring Pages

With eight curling arms and a round head, an octopus is a joy to draw and to color, and it can hold a lot of things at once. These octopus coloring pages take full advantage of those arms: juggling, drumming, knitting, painting and hugging, all under the sea.

Many of the pages are about hiding, because real octopuses love a snug den: one peeks out of a big spiral seashell, one out of an old jar on the sea floor, one naps in an open clam shell, one sleeps in an underwater cave, one rests in a rocky tide pool and one peeks over a cloud of its own ink. Others put all eight arms to work: juggling pebbles, playing a drum kit among the coral, painting at an easel with a brush in every arm, knitting a scarf with four needles, pouring tea at a little table, steering a submarine, conducting a band of seahorses and painting spots on a rock.

Sea friends appear everywhere: a sea turtle, a crab in the seaweed, a jellyfish, a smiling starfish and a tiny baby octopus sitting on its parent's head. There is a treasure chest full of coins, an anchor in the sand, a pearl, a sailboat and an umbrella under a waterfall. The simplest pages show a happy octopus spreading its arms, one in a sailor hat and one blowing bubbles, and for older colorists there is an octopus filled with swirling mandala patterns. The holidays are here too: an octopus carves a jack o'lantern and trick-or-treats in a witch hat, decorates a Christmas tree, wears a Santa hat with a present, builds a snowman, carries an Easter basket, holds a heart balloon and blows out the candles on a birthday cake.

Amazing octopus facts

Octopuses are some of the cleverest animals in the sea:

• An octopus has eight arms covered in suckers, and each sucker can taste and feel what it touches.
• It has three hearts and blue blood.
• It can change color and even texture in a fraction of a second to hide against rocks and coral.
• When threatened, it squirts a cloud of ink and jets away.
• With no bones at all, an octopus can squeeze through any gap larger than its beak, which is why it loves jars, shells and cracks.
• Octopuses can solve puzzles, open jars and recognize individual people.

What color is an octopus?

Real octopuses are masters of disguise, so almost any color works, but a few are typical:

• Red, orange and reddish brown for the common octopus.
• Pink and purple for a cute cartoon octopus.
• Pale cream or white on the underside of the arms and suckers.
• Blue rings on yellow for the tiny blue-ringed octopus.

The sea floor looks great in sandy yellows, the coral in pinks and oranges, and the water in blues and greens.

Cute octopuses and patterned ones

The simplest pages show one friendly octopus, drawn large. Quick to color, above the grid, begins with:

• Jar home
• Cave nap
• Starfish dance

The coral, the seaweed, the drums and the mandala are full of detail. Lots of detail begins with:

• Octopus mandala
• Easter basket
• Treasure

Ocean lessons and party pages

Octopus pages fit an ocean unit at school: count the arms, talk about suckers and ink, and compare the octopus with the other sea animals on the page. They also make fun place mats for an under-the-sea birthday party, with the birthday cake page for the guest of honor.

Printing

Every page is a free A4 PDF drawn at 300 dpi. A4 prints at full size, and on US Letter "fit to page" shrinks the drawing by about six percent so every arm stays on the paper. The printing guide shows the setting. Add to pack prints a whole reef at once. More sea creatures are in the ocean coloring pages, the fish coloring pages and the shark coloring pages, and more wildlife in the animal coloring pages.