cephalopods
pharyngula | April 30, 2012Some species of cephalopods are incapable of concealing their sexual history. The males produce packets of sperm called spermatangia that they grasp with a specialized arm that they then reach out and splat, poke into their mate. In Octopoteuthis deletron, a deep-sea squid, these spermatangia are large, pale, and distinctive, so every time a squid is mated it's left with a little white dangling flag marking it — so sex is like a combination of tag and paintball. The males are loaded with ammo — 1646 were counted in the reproductive tract of one male — and the spermatangia can be counted…
pharyngula | March 30, 2012Forget that goofy crocoduck. I want a cephalogull.
Actually, this isn't an octopus growing bird wings. I have a whole series of violent photos of the event — it's a very cunning octopus that oozed up to the Ogden Point breakwater in Victoria, BC, reached up silently with it's suckered arms, and dragged a seagull down to a watery doom, and a tasty fowl dinner. If you were eating nothing but crab every day you might want to try something different too.
Also, take that, bird fans!
(Also on FtB)
pharyngula | March 16, 2012Regal, triumphant…but so alone. Which reminds me that I must fly home soon to my 32nd wedding anniversary and some cephalove.
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pharyngula | March 9, 2012
Are you intimidated, or do you see this as a challenge?
(via TONMO, which has the whole explicit sequence of octopus mating captured in exquisite photographic detail)
(Also on FtB)
pharyngula | March 2, 2012
(Image without watermark available commercially from CoolWaterPhoto)
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pharyngula | February 24, 2012It had to by flying squid today, because of this story in Nature about squid locomotor energetics. Scientists measured the velocities of flying squid in air, and noted that they can move five times faster in a less dense/viscous medium (as we say in our technical discussions of this issue…no duh.) So they are proposing that maybe these species of squid do it to travel long distances efficiently.
Querulous voices were raised to point out something equally obvious: then where are they all? Photos of squid in flight are extraordinarily rare — they don't do it routinely, it seems. It's more…
pharyngula | February 3, 2012Next step: lasers mounted on squid mantles.
You puny humans are so screwed.
(Also on FtB)
pharyngula | January 27, 2012The gang at Skepticon are running a poll to design the World's Most Innocuous Atheist Billboard, and they've settled on the message — "Baby Animals Are Cute" — and they've got some choices for you to pick from. I thought I'd help and offer my own suggestion:
See? Far superior to the kittens and puppies they suggest, and it's much more in the spirit of atheism.
DO NOT ARGUE WITH ME. Or Baby Octopus will devour you.
(Also on FtB)
pharyngula | January 13, 2012Look at this: no originality at all. The wanna-bes and poseurs all have to dress up in their idol's fashions, even if it is cross-phylum dressing.
(via NatGeo)
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pharyngula | December 30, 2011Weep for the poor creatures.
But note the steely glint of vengeance in the eye of their living compatriots.
(Also on FtB)