The Indonesian mimic octopus is able to camouflage itself from predators by blending into the background  Sometimes, though, even when a predator is nearby, the mimic octopus takes on a color pattern that is not present in the immediate environment
A marine biologist of cephalopods claims that this behavior is a sign of an octopus engaging in play, meaning that the behavior does not confer any specific advantage
An observational study that tracked a mimic octopus over the course of a week found that it changed the color of its skin even when there were no predators in the area.