Either it’ll give you the screaming heebeegeebees or fill you with a rapturous awe of nature: Fetal cuttlefish can identify and remember prey through the gelatinous, translucent shells of their eggs. That’s right, everyone’s favorite tentacle-mustachioed mollusk is a dyed-in-the-wool killer before birth.

It’s the first known instance of a fetus learning visual cues and scientists are wondrously confounded. So how does one teach a fetal cuttlefish? Ludovic Dickel and a team of scientists at the University of Caen Basse-Normandy, France, simply placed crabs alongside cuttlefish eggs. These cuttlefish preferred to dine on crab when they grew up. Cuttlefish who aren’t exposed to crab before they hatch prefer shrimp.

Dickel believes the fetal cuttlefish can see through their shells and make mental menus of their future prey.

Add this feat to the cuttlefish’s already impressive list of talents: dextrous tentacles, ink cloud, hydro-jet propulsion and color-changing dermis.

Link to BBC article.