This is the creepy moment a giant Pacific octopus grabbed hold of a diver’s hand to pull him under a rock because it thought he was food.

Tom Hlavac was diving off Madrona Point, Canada, on October 1 when he spotted an adult octopus lying in a den on the seafloor.

Disturbing footage shows the giant cephalopod reach out and grip Tom’s hand after he had felt one of the animal’s suckers.

Tasting flesh instead of a wetsuit, the octopus tried to pull Tom under the rock canopy to turn him into dinner forcing the diver to peel the suckers off him.

Tom said: “I had to brace myself against the top of the cave to stop myself from being pulled under.

“It probably gripped me with 30kgs of force. Using its back tentacles it clung to the back of its den and tried to pull me in with its front tentacles.

“I wasn't wearing gloves so it would have tasted flesh rather than a plastic dry suit. I think it might have confused me for a seal.

“It was only curious about me because it thought I was food. They don’t waste time playing. Octopus only socialise when they're mating or eating each other.

“They're alien creatures. I like to think of them as something similar to what you'd find in outer space.

“They will grab anything food related that comes near them. That can be anything from seals to sea birds that have dived into the water and even smaller octopus.

“Fortunately I have 45 years’ experience of diving and know how to peel the suckers off. But an inexperienced diver might have panicked and been in trouble.”