Organisms

One must acknowledge the Giant Pacific Octopus.
a, Schematic of Octopus bimaculoides anatomy, highlighting the tissues sampled for transcriptome analysis: viscera (heart, kidney and hepatopancreas), yellow; gonads (ova or testes), peach; retina, orange; optic lobe (OL), maroon; supraesophageal brain (Supra), bright pink; subesophageal brain (Sub), light pink; posterior salivary gland (PSG), purple; axial nerve cord (ANC), red; suckers, grey; skin, mottled brown; stage 15 (St15) embryo, aquamarine. Skin sampled for transcriptome analysis included the eyespot, shown in light blue. b, C2H2 and protocadherin domain-containing gene families…
We're leaving for the West coast on Friday, and of course my creaky old joints are lancing me with stabby excruciating pain. I have seen my doctor. I have pills. Because I must restore myself with red cedar, Sitka spruce, sea stacks, tide pools, banana slugs, great herds of sea urchins, and the ocean and the mountains, I will get there if Mary has to carry me on her back. Miguel Vieira The Olympic National Forest is also where Mary and I had our honeymoon, 35 years ago. If ever I could just ditch all my responsibilities and retreat somewhere to avoid everything, this is where I'd go. But…
I saw this video and that description, and my first thought was "siphonophore". Got it in one.
Oh, my…the meeting looks very interesting, especially that one titled "Cephalopod Neurogenomics: Insights into the evolution of complex brains". Can I escape to Florida that early in the semester? Can I afford it? My schedule and my wallet are moaning "noooooo…"
This bird may be doomed. It's genome has been sequenced, and there is very little genetic diversity in the remaining populations.
Divers discovered this gigantic transparent blob floating in the sea off the Turkish coast. What could it be? It looks like that's a squid egg mass, containing millions of eggs and embryos, drifting deep in the ocean until it hatches out, releasing a vast swarm of tiny predators in one overwhelming cloud. If you're not going to tend to your babies, that's a smart strategy for giving a percentage of your relatively helpless young a chance to live. Oh, ignore the music in the video. It's insufficiently doom-laden and lacking in minor keys.
SCREEEE SCREEEE SCREEEEEEEEEEE. Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Simon Chandra
Uh, maybe not. What if it gives you a tiny little nibble? Now, 10 minutes later, you notice something strange. Your lips are going numb. So is your face. You want to yell for help but can’t: It’s getting harder to speak. And your stomach feels—oh, gross! Right in front of everyone. Somebody calls an ambulance. It’s getting tough to stand. It’s getting tough to breathe. The numbness is spreading to your hands, feet, and chest. And you continue to be aware for every agonizing moment of it. You get to the hospital in time. You get hooked up to a ventilator, the machine forcing air into your…
I'm going to stay away from Mary for a while. It was a busy weekend for both of us, we're both really tired, and then she sends me this as an appropriate organism. I'm trying to read the message in sending a picture of a botfly to your spouse. Featured Creatures Don't panic, here's the cure: bacon.
The NY Times has stirred up some controversy by recommending a novel flavor combination: guacamole made with peas. I must weigh in. iStock_000001074285Small Sounds delicious! Would love to try it!
Is it Shark Week again? I wouldn't know, because their destructive and dishonest portrayals of these amazing animals was a major factor leading me to turn off the Discovery Channel and never watch it again. SDExpeditions Read David Shiffman's essay on the abuses of sharks, and join the rest of us in contributing to Discovery's declining audience share.
Especially if you're a cuttlefish.
Behold, the newly rediscovered Malatgan River caecilian. When my ankle acts up, I begin to think that maybe these critters were smarter than I am in jettisoning all those messy, complicated limbs.
You can stop emailing me now. Everyone on the planet has seen Opisthoteuthis adorabilis, fallen in love, and demanded that I feature it in a Friday Cephalopod. OK!