Octopus latches itself onto fisherman and almost suffocates him in horrific scenes as he repeatedly clubs it

Terrifying video footage has shown the moment an octopus wrapped itself around a fisherman's face and almost suffocated him while out at sea.

The bizarre incident showed the mollusk clamp its arms onto the face of angler Jesser Cervantes despite his desperate attempts to get the sea creature off.

Cervantes was fishing off Puerto Princesa Island in Palawan, the Philippines on July 10 when he became victim to the octopus which continued to cling onto his face.

Shocking footage showed the local fisherman sitting in a small wooden dinghy as he tries to prise it from his face, but the creature continues to spread itself around his head using suckers to grip the skin.

At one point it can be seen latching onto the fisherman’s mouth as he repeatedly sighs and clutches it with his hands.

But the relentless octopus refuses to release itself from him, forcing the angler to then go on to grab a cut bamboo stem and repeatedly bash it with force to try and get it off.

After around thirty seconds wrestling with the octopus, he then finally manages to tear it free from sucking on his face and places it back into the sea following the struggle.

After the incident, which was caught on camera, the angler described how encounters of this nature are more common than you might think and that the sea creatures often respond in the same way.

“The octopus I caught was very hard to handle," he told ViralPress. "It almost ripped my face," he added.

Other videos of him on TikTok wrestling with an octopus at sea appear to show him covered in black ink.

Are octopuses dangerous?

Octopuses are widely-known for their intelligence, their powerful suckers on their arms and flexible bodies. They are able to cling to most surfaces, including rocks and their prey. Their suckers have a powerful grip which makes it difficult to remove.

Although, most octopuses are not actually dangerous to humans. Their weak venom is used on small crabs and fish, and not people.

While all species do carry venom to subdue their prey, it is only the blue-ringed octopus that can kill humans.

Common octopuses are described as shy and typically avoid people. They only usually bite if they are directly handled by humans or cornered and feel threatened.

According to Octonation, no cephalopod species are actually interested in targeting humans for food.