As I gazed into a wall tank of seal stars and crabs, a shadow appeared, and peering upwards I saw a pallid white hand writhing in the water. For a second I wondered if it was something to frighten the kids—it worked for me—but then it released a few bits of fish and I realised that the tank’s occupants were being fed by a hand gloved in latex. Presently, the owner of the hand, Hiltrun Ratz strode into the viewing room, and we watched the antics of the octo­pus together. “We feed it crabs,” she said. “See all the empty backs on the floor of the tank? Each octopus stays for a couple of years. This guy is pretty new. Want to come and see the fish outside being fed?”