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2024-03-18 "She's Bouncing the Ball!" On the Uncanny Way Octopuses Play (David Toomey)
Real, empirical evidence of octopus play would be a finding of some consequence.
2024-03-04 Oldest Known Animal Sex Chromosome Evolved In Octopuses 380 Mya (Nature)
Researchers have found the oldest known sex chromosome in animals -- the octopus Z chromosome -- which first evolved in an ancient ancestor of octopuses around 380 million years ago. The team also found Z chromosomes in some other octopus and squid species -- but not in a nautilus.
2023-12-22 A Grave Warning About Antarctica Is Encoded In Octopus DNA (ScienceAlert)
An analysis of two geographically separated octopus populations indicates they were once part of one big family. This suggests that around 125,000 years ago, the massive ice sheet that separates them had fully collapsed into the sea.
2023-11-29 Robo-Tentacle Lets People Find Out How It Feels To Have An Octopus Arm (Nature)
Mimicking the snatch and grab of an octopus snaring its prey required a new way of thinking about robotics.
2023-11-29 If An Octopus Is So Smart, Should You Eat It? (Washington Post)
Just as we begin to understand cephalopods' brains, seafood companies want to farm them commercially
2023-11-17 Swimmer Witnesses Surprise Fight Between Octopus & Sea Lion (CBC)
The battle between the aquatic mammal and eight-limbed mollusc took place just south of Nanaimo, which is about 110 km north of Victoria on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. (Original video.)
2023-10-07 Antarctic Octopuses Survive In Earth's Coldest Ocean Without Freezing. How? (ScienceAlert)
Pareledone octopuses were found to use their three hearts to pump blue blood around their bodies, supplying oxygen to tissues. They also appear to have 'cold-adapted' enzymes, according to an investigation led by the Marine Biological Laboratory in the US.
2023-06-30 Rare Deep-sea Octopus Nursery Discovered Off Costa Rica (ABC US)
The scientists believe the octopus is a new species of ink-less Muusoctopus.
2023-06-28 Cuttlefish Camouflage Is More Complex Than Previously Thought (Sci News)
Scientists' observations suggest that the cuttlefish's camouflage system is highly flexible and adaptable. More cephlo-camouflage: Glass squid use an invisibility cloak to stay safe in the twilight zone (Youtube: MBARI)
2023-06-20 Octopuses Shown To Map Their Visual Landscape Much Like Humans Do (Phys.org)
For the first time, neuroscientists have recorded neural activity from the visual system of an octopus. "We were able to see that each location in the optic lobe responded to one location on the screen in front of the animal. If we moved a spot over, the response moved over in the brain."
2023-06-08 Octopuses Tweak The RNA In Their Brains To Adjust To Warmer And Cooler Waters (NPR)
Researchers report that octopuses are able to edit genetic information to quickly resculpt their brains when confronted with changes in their environment. Original paper: "Temperature-dependent RNA editing in octopus extensively recodes the neural proteome" (Cell). See also: "Octopuses And Squid Are Masters Of RNA Editing While Leaving DNA Intact" (ScienceNews)
2023-05-21 Amazing Footage Suggests That Octopuses Have Nightmares Too (IFL Science)
Keep an eye on an octopus taking a nap and you might catch their skin flashing between a sallow white tone and a vibrant color. Amazingly, scientists believe this is evidence of dreaming.
2023-04-29 There's A Big Difference In How Octopuses And Squid Taste The World Around Them (Science Alert)
The last common ancestor between squids and octopuses was around 300 million years ago. Since then, they have had fascinating differences in their adaptations. And one of these is how they taste the world around them.
2023-04-26 An Octopus's Stripes Can Act As A Unique ID (Ars Technica)
UC Berkeley researchers found that the striping patterns of the lesser Pacific striped octopus (aka zebra octopus, Octopus chierchiae) are individualized, similar to our fingerprint patterns, making them easier to track and study in the wild than other constanly camouflaging octopuses.
2023-04-18 Octopus, Squid & Cuttlefish Arms Evolved To "Taste" Different Compounds (ScienceNews)
Cephalopods have proteins on suckers along their tentacles that allow them to "taste" by touching objects. But the species have evolved to detect different compounds, and the differing tastes may be tied to the species' hunting styles.
2023-02-23 Scientists Record First-Ever Brain Waves From Freely Moving Octopuses (Neuroscience News)
By implanting electrodes and monitoring data, researchers have successfully captured the brain activity of freely moving octopuses. The recorded brain activity could solve numerous questions about octopus behaviors including movement, cognition, and learning abilities. More: "We’re one step closer to reading an octopus’s mind"
2022-11-25 What Octopus & Human Brains Have In Common (phys.org)
Octopuses possess a massively expanded repertoire of microRNAs in their neural tissue -- reflecting similar developments that occurred in vertebrates.
2022-11-01 A Map Of The Octopus Visual System (ScienceAlert)
A valiant effort to map the optic lobe of the octopus brain, cell by cell, has revealed a visual system with remarkable similarities and differences to our own.
2022-10-26 New Research Shows How Octopuses May Have Evolved (phys.org)
Argonauta argo, a type of octopus, appears to have evolved independently to develop something resembling a shell, despite having lost the genetic code that produced actual shells in its ancestors and relatives.
2022-09-20 How to Hunt Like an Octopus (NY Times)
High-speed video recordings reveal that the cephalopod’s eight arms aren’t moving randomly when they go in for the kill.
2022-08-17 Another Path To Intelligence (Nautilus)
Octopus brains are nothing like ours -- yet we have much in common.
2022-06-30 Octopus Sightings Surge In Cornwall Waters (BBC)
Cornwall Wildlife Trust said the last significant population boom for octopus was recorded on England's south coast in 1948. It is not known whether this year will classify as the first octopus boom in more than 70 years.
2022-06-24 Italian Researchers A Step Closer To Understanding Cognitive Abilities Of The Octopus (European Scientist)
Researchers found that some crucial genes -- called transposons or jumping genes -- are active both in the human brain and in the brains of some species of octopus. (Original paper: "Identification of LINE retrotransposons and long non-coding RNAs expressed in the octopus brain")
2022-05-12 Octopuses Tragically Destroy Themselves After Mating. We May Finally Know Why. (Science Alert)
By the time a young octopus wriggles out of its egg, its mother is already dead. A few months later, its father will die, too. Researchers figured out that the optic gland plays a role in an octopus's programmed death.
2022-05-10 "Mind-Boggling" Scrambled Genome Found In Cephalopods Could Explain Their Smarts. (Live Science)
New genetic sequencing reveals that squid, octopus, and cuttlefish genes are mixed up, arranged in strange orders not seen in other, non-cephalopod species, possibly explaining how they evolved the most complicated nervous systems of any invertebrate.
2022-03-14 Octopuses Are Increasingly Using Trash For Shelter, Harrowing Study Shows (Science Alert)
A systematic review of underwater photographs and videos from around the world has tallied 24 cephalopod species making their homes in marine litter.
2022-03-08 Ancient "Vampire" Cephalopod From 330M Years Ago Is A First Of Its Kind (Science Alert)
The cephalopod (Syllipsimopodi bideni), belonging to the vampyropod or octopodiform superorder, pushes back the age of the group by about 82M years. "This is the first and only known vampyropod to possess 10 functional appendages." Original paper in Nature.
2022-01-20 What Scientists Learned By Putting Octopuses In MRI Machines (The Scientist)
The size and complexity of cephalopod brain structures differ depending on the habitats the creatures occupy, a study finds.
2022-01-20 Deepest-Dwelling Squid Observed At Depth Of 6,200 Meters (phys.org)
A pair of researchers has recorded on video a young bigfin squid swimming just above the seafloor at an approximate depth of 6,200 meters while they were looking for a sunken warship.
2022-01-13 Blanket Octopus Spotted For Only Fourth Time (ABC.net.au)
Marine biologist recently spotted the blanket octopus (Tremoctopus violaceus). The rare species has only been spotted off Lady Elliot Island, AU, three times previously. The octopuses are nomadic creatures moving locations every couple of days.
2021-10-22 Baby Octopuses Grow Hundreds Of Temporary Organs, Then Lose Them Without A Trace (Live Science)
They hide in holes and open like umbrellas -- but what the heck are "Kölliker's organs" for? Full paper: "Born With Bristles: New Insights on the Kölliker's Organs of Octopus Skin".
2021-08-26 Female Octopuses Throw Things At Males That Are Harassing Them (New Scientist)
An analysis of footage of octopuses off the coast of Australia "throwing" shells and silt suggests that they intentionally target -- and often hit -- other octopuses. Full paper: "In the Line of Fire: Debris Throwing by Wild Octopuses".
2021-08-24 And Her Name Is... Gertie! (PDZA)
After a week of public voting, fans chose Gertie as the name for the new giant Pacific octopus in the Pacific Seas Aquarium at Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium.
2021-08-17 Unlike Humans, Cuttlefish Retain Sharp Memory Of Specific Events In Old Age (phys.org)
Cuttlefish can remember what, where, and when specific events happened -- right up to their last few days of life. The research results are the first evidence of an animal whose memory of specific events does not deteriorate with age. Original paper: "Episodic-like memory is preserved with age in cuttlefish".
2021-08-15 Tatoosh Dies (Boston.com)
The New England Aquarium reported their giant Pacific octopus "Tatoosh" passed away. "As an ambassador for his species, he inspired awe & helped educate Aquarium guests, while helping Aquarium staff further their knowledge of the needs & behavior of this species. He will be missed."
2021-07-09 Did a Cuttlefish Write This? (NY Times)
Octopuses and squid are full of cephalopod character. But more scientists are making the case that cuttlefish hold the key to unlocking evolutionary secrets about intelligence.
2021-07-08 Glass Octopus Caught On Video (Schmidt Ocean Institute)
Research vessel Falkor, exploring the Phoenix Islands Archipelago, made two rare sightings of a glass octopus (Vitreledonella richardi), a nearly transparent species whose only visible features are its optic nerve, eyeballs and digestive tract. VIDEO & more info.
2021-07-06 Suckers For Learning: Why Octopuses Are So Intelligent (The Conversation)
Our last common ancestor with the octopus existed more than 500 million years ago. So why is it that they seem to show such peculiar similarities with humans, while at the same time appearing so alien?
2021-07-06 Diversity of Tiny Bobtail Squid Driven by Major Ancient Biogeographic Events (SciTechDaily)
Researchers from the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology have used genetic techniques to show that bobtail squid and bottletail squid share a relatively recent common ancestor and that major biogeographical events might have shaped the evolution of the many different species.
2021-06-24 Untangling The Long-Armed Mystery Of The Bigfin Squid (Science Friday)
The elbowed, spindly appendages of the bigfin squid have long stunned the public. But scientists say there is more to this deep-sea dweller than its ghostly appearance.
2021-06-23 Dozens Of Baby Squid Are Orbiting Our Planet Right Now (Popular Science)
Earlier this month, NASA launched a routine SpaceX resupply mission to the International Space Station. But onboard that ship were 128 highly unusual passengers: newly hatched Hawaiian bobtail squid.
2021-06-19 VIDEO: Octopus Pushes Pipe With Her Eggs Inside Back Towards Ocean (Sheree Marris)
On June 6, Sheree Marris, an Australian marine biologist, discovered a white pipe washed ashore on a beach in Melbourne’s McCrae suburb and decided to pick it up. She saw reddish-colored legs start to emerge from inside the pipe. It was an octopus.
2021-06-18 UK MPs: Octopuses Feel Pain & Need Legal Protection (BBC)
When you think of an octopus or lobster, what comes to mind? Seafood or intelligent marine life? A group of Conservative MPs think it's the latter and argue they should be included in the Animal Welfare (Sentience) Bill, which recognises animal sentience -- the capacity of animals to have feelings, including pain and suffering.
2021-04-22 Seeing Inside the Newly Discovered Emperor Dumbo Octopus (Hakai)
The discovery of the emperor Dumbo octopus (Grimpoteuthis imperator) stemmed from the use of nondestructive MRI and CT scans -- techniques that could revolutionize taxonomy. (Original paper.)
2021-04-02 Mysterious "Blobs" Near Norway Are Full Of Squid Mucus And Embryos (Live Science)
Each enormous, jelly-like orb, more than 3 feet (1 meter) wide, hovering in place partway between the seafloor and the surface, could contain hundreds of thousands of eggs of a common squid called Illex coindetii, a DNA analysis revealed.
2021-03-26 Vampire Squid Ancestor Died In "Eternal Embrace" With Its Dinner (Live Science)
About 180 million years ago, an eight-armed vampyromorph predator seized its underwater prey -- another eight-armed beastie -- and began to nibble on it, until disaster struck and they both died from suffocation, a new study finds.
2021-03-25 Sleeping Octopuses May Have Dreams, But They're Probably Brief (NPR)
Octopuses have alternating periods of "quiet" and "active" sleep that make their rest similar to that of mammals, despite being separated by more than 500 million years of evolution.
2021-03-05 Octopuses Not Only Feel Pain Physically, But Emotionally Too, First Study Finds (ScienceAlert)
An important new study suggests octopuses are likely to feel and respond to pain in a similar way to mammals - the first strong evidence for this capacity in any invertebrate.
2021-03-02 Cuttlefish Can Pass The Marshmallow Test (Ars Technica)
Certain species show a remarkable ability to delay gratification, notably great apes, corvids, and parrots, while other species do not (such as rodents, chickens, and pigeons.) Add the cuttlefish to the former category.
2021-02-22 Evidence Of Predation By Octopuses Pushed Back 25M Years (phys.org)
New research unveiled the earliest evidence of octopus predation in the fossil record: tiny holes drilled in the clams they preyed upon during the Cretaceous period about 75M years ago.
2021-02-20 Octopuses Have A Secret Sense To Keep Their 8 Arms Out Of Trouble (NY Times)
Even when an octopus can't see light with its eyes, its arms seem to know it is there.
2020-12-21 Octopuses Observed Punching Fish, Perhaps Out of Spite, Scientists Say (ScienceAlert)
Biologist Eduardo Sampaio from the University of Lisbon in Portugal: "Octopuses and fishes are known to hunt together, taking advantage of the other's morphology and hunting strategy... Since multiple partners join, this creates a complex network where investment and pay-off can be unbalanced, giving rise to partner control mechanisms." Original paper: "Octopuses punch fishes during collaborative interspecific hunting events" -- "Here we report a series of events ... where different Octopus cyanea individuals engage in active displacement of partner fish during collaborative hunting."
2020-11-11 Rare Bigfin Squid Found In Australian Waters (New Scientist)
The extremely rare bigfin squid (Magnapinna), a deep-sea creature found more than 2 km underwater, has been spotted in Australian waters for the first time.
2020-10-29 First-Ever Footage Of Ram's Horn Squid (ScienceAlert)
Ram's horn shells are small, delicate spiral structures beachcombers can commonly find throughout the world. Yet despite their ubiquity, the original owners of these shells (Spirula spirula) are extremely elusive. Until now, we've never had footage of a single one in the wild.
2020-10-29 When It Comes To Octopuses, Taste Is For Suckers (NY Times)
Octopuses can taste what their arms touch, and scientists have figured out how. Original paper: Molecular Basis of Chemotactile Sensation in Octopus.
2020-09-17 Possible Rare "Seven-Armed Octopus" Found On Whidbey Island, WA (Whidbey News-Times)
The tentacles of a deep-sea creature that washed up on a Whidbey beach have reached across the country. Scientists from universities and research centers as far away as the Smithsonian Institution have identified it as a rare seven-armed octopus (Haliphron atlanticus), although the conclusion isn't unanimous.
2020-05-29 World's Deepest Octopus Captured On Camera (BBC)
The deepest ever sighting of an octopus has been made by cameras on the Indian Ocean floor, 7,000m down in the Java Trench. Researchers, who report the discovery in the journal Marine Biology, say it's a species of "Dumbo" octopus (genus Grimpoteuthis). Original paper: "First in situ observation of Cephalopoda at hadal depths"
2020-03-23 New Genetic Editing Powers Discovered In Squid (Science Daily)
Scientists have discovered that squid massively edit their own genetic instructions not only within the nucleus of their neurons, but also within the axon.
2020-02-16 Reconstructing fossil cephalopods: Endoceras giganteum (Incertae Sedis Blog)
The orthoceratoid Endoceras is the both the longest extinct cephalopod and largest Paleozoic invertebrate. By incorporating data from both orthoceratoids and extant nautiluses, Tyler Greenfield has attempted a more rigorous restoration of this taxon.
2020-02-09 Cuttlefish Skimp On Lunch When There's Shrimp For Dinner (Science Focus)
When European common cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis) know that their favourite food will be on the menu at dinnertime, they'll eat less for lunch, according to new research from the University of Cambridge.
2020-01-29 Squid Brains Are Nearly As Complex As Dog Brains, Researchers Claim (ScienceAlert)
Using MRI, researchers have discovered and described previously unknown major neural pathways in a bigfin reef squid (Sepioteuthis lessoniana). "We can see that a lot of neural circuits are dedicated to camouflage and visual communication," said Wen-Sung Chung. Paper in iScience: "Toward an MRI-Based Mesoscale Connectome of the Squid Brain", Chung et al.
2020-01-16 The Legendary, Mysterious Giant Squid's Genome Is Revealed (MBL)
Important clues about the anatomy and evolution of the mysterious giant squid (Architeuthis dux) are revealed through publication of its full genome sequence. Paper in GigaScience: "A draft genome sequence of the elusive giant squid, Architeuthis dux", da Fonseca et al.
2020-01-08 What Scientists Learned by Putting 3-D Glasses on Cuttlefish (The Atlantic)
Some cuttlefish absolutely refuse to wear 3-D glasses, "but about 20 to 30 percent didn't seem to be bothered. Everyone was very surprised." Original paper: "Cuttlefish use stereopsis to strike at prey", R. C. Feord, et al.
2019-11-25 Fossils Reveal Swimming Patterns Of Long Extinct Cephalopod (phys.org)
Scientists use a computational fluid dynamics model to study the locomotion of ammonoids, a group of cephalopods that swam the oceans for almost 300 million years before going extinct.
2019-10-16 WHALE FALL (Nautilus Live)
The Nautilus team discovered a whale fall (dead whale on ocean floor) while exploring off California's coast. Watch video of deep-sea octopuses feasting on its blubber. Or, see a photo of one of the octopuses examining the Hercules ROV.
2019-10-09 The Deeper This Purple Octopus Lives, The Bumpier Its Skin (NatGeo)
A new study revealed that the wartier the Pacific warty octopuses (Graneledone pacifica) is, the deeper it lives.
2019-09-23 Octopus Dreaming (video) (PBS)
Watch the brilliant color changes of a sleeping octopus. Clip from the PBS documentary "Octopus: Making Contact". Follow-up: "Was Heidi the Octopus Really Dreaming?"
2019-08-06 Octopus Bites Captor (KIRO)
A human participant in a fishing derby in the Tacoma Narrows posed for a photo contest with a captured octopus on her face. The octopus bit her in self-defense. The human eventually went to the emergency room. "And I'm still in pain," she said. "I'm on three different antibiotics. This can come and go, the swelling, for months they say." She says the whole painful experience taught her a valuable lesson about handling live octopuses, which have powerful beaks and poisonous venom. No word on the condition of the octopus.
2019-07-28 How to Make Quicksand Like an Octopus (JSTOR)
The southern sand octopus (Octopus kaurna) lives in sand flats around southern Australia and Tasmania. Unlike most octopuses, the sand octopus cannot change its color. Instead it uses its siphon to blast sand beneath it, suspending the sand in water, making its own quicksand that it can pull itself down into for shelter.
2019-07-26 Sinuous Squid Filmed Alive for First Time (Nautilus Live)
The Asperoteuthis mangoldae squid is a recently discovered deep-sea species that was just seen alive for the first time! Researchers think this unusual squid's tail may help it mimic other animals, like a stinging siphonophore. Also from Nautilus: Rare encounter with piglet squid.
2019-07-15 The Genes That Make Squid Eyes Also Make Your Legs (Science)
Biologists have discovered that the genes that guide the initial formation of legs in us and other vertebrates also guide the formation of the squid's lens. The find is yet another example of how nature recruits genes used for one purpose to do another job for the body.
2019-07-08 Dumbo Octopus Photobombs Seafloor Survey (Video) (Nautilus Live)
"Hello" "WOW" "Hi friend!" The Nautilus mission control erupts in excitement and adoration when a dumbo octopus (Grimpoteuthis sp.) photobombs their visual survey of rocky ridges with ROV Hercules.
2019-07-03 Piglet Squid Siphon Looks Like a Snout (Video) (Nautilus Live)
The Nautilus team enjoyed a quick close-up with a see-through piglet squid (Helicocranchia sp.), named for its large siphon that looks like a snout.
2019-07-02 For Smart Animals, Octopuses Are Very Weird (The Atlantic)
The combination of short lives, solitude, and smarts is unique to cephalopods. And according to a recent paper, the traits are all linked to a particular development in the octopus's evolutionary history: Its ancestors lost their shells.
2019-06-25 How Octopus Arms Make Decisions (Science Daily)
Researchers have long suspected that octopuses' arms may have minds of their own. A new model is the first attempt at a comprehensive representation of information flow between the octopus's suckers, arms and brain
2019-06-21 Cephalopod Week (Science Friday)
Cephalopod champions, assemble! Cephalopod Week has returned for its sixth year of celebration and merriment of all things armed, tentacled, and suckered.
2019-06-20 Here Be Monsters: We Filmed a Giant Squid in America's Backyard (NOAA)
On Wed. June 19, NOAA's "Journey into Midnight" mission filmed a 10-12 ft. (3-3.7 m) long juvenile giant squid in the bathypelagic zone (below 3800ft./1000m) of the Gulf of Mexico.
2019-06-14 Squid Could Thrive Under Climate Change (ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies)
Squid will survive and may even flourish under even the worst-case ocean acidification scenarios, according to a new study.
2019-05-17 Climate Breakdown Could Send Squid And Octopuses Blind (ScienceAlert)
Marine biologists have just demonstrated for the first time that low oxygen levels in the water can send marine invertebrates blind.
2019-05-14 Scientists Intrigued By Open-Ocean Dwelling Blanket Octopus (The Standard)
A mysterious and rarely seen female octopus has washed up on a Port Fairy, AU beach but scientists are unsure exactly why. Wikipedia: Blanket octopus (Tremoctopus).
2019-05-13 Extinct Squid Relative Entombed In Amber For 100 million Years (Science)
A cache of ancient Burmese amber has revealed something completely unexpected: an extinct squidlike organism called an ammonite, which swam Earth’s seas while dinosaurs dominated the land. This is the first ammonite and one of the very first marine organisms ever found in amber; because the gemstone is fossilized tree resin, it traps mostly land organisms.
2019-04-25 Video: Octo in a cup (Pall Sigurdsson)
Divers spent a whole dive and most of their air finding a new shell for a coconut octopus that had been using a plastic cup.
2019-03-19 Scientists Discover What's Controlling Chameleon-Like Abilities In Squid (UChicago News)
A paradigm-shifting discovery in how specialized organs in squid skin, called chromatophores, contribute to their color and pattern switching feat via an elegant interplay of pigmentary action and structural coloration.
2019-03-12 This Octopus's Dreams (Maybe) Were Written All Over Its Body (Live Science)
Octopuses are known for their astonishing ability to rapidly shift their skin color and texture, to hide from predators, to sneak up on prey and to communicate with each other. But what exactly is going on when octopuses change color in their sleep? (Video)
2019-02-23 Paper Nautilus, Octopus Of The Open Sea (JSTOR)
Paper nautilus is actually the name for the shell of female Argonautidae. This family of small octopuses lives in the pelagic (open ocean) zone rather than near the seafloor like most octopuses. They are unrelated to the better-known chambered nautilus.
2019-02-21 Squid Teeth Could Help Make Bioplastics & Self-Repairing Clothes (New Scientist)
Squid have tough, serrated suckers at the end of their tentacles known as squid ring teeth (SRT). A protein in SRTs can be turned into fibres and films for making tough, flexible and biodegradable plastics. Melik Demirel at Penn. State University and his team have genetically engineered E. coli bacteria to grow it.
2019-02-19 New Squid Genome Shines Light On Symbiotic Evolution (Quanta)
Researchers hope that the genes of Hawaiian bobtail squid (Euprymna scolopes), which use symbiotic microbes (Vibrio fischeri) to produce camouflaging light, can illuminate how animals evolved organs for beneficial bacteria.
2019-01-24 Envisioned "Octopus Farms" Would Have Far-Reaching & Detrimental Environmental Impact (NYU)
Commercial octopus farming, currently in developmental stages on multiple continents, would have a negative ripple effect on sustainability and animal welfare, concludes a team of researchers.
2018-10-31 Octavius The Octopus Surprises Aquarium (Savannah Now)
Curator Devin Dumont of the Marine Education Center and Aquarium at Skidaway, GA: "I noticed this cloud of moving dots and I realized, 'Oh my God, she had babies. There are babies. There are babies everywhere.' And a sort of panic ensued. I immediately started scooping them out and putting them in buckets and there were just buckets and buckets and buckets full of tiny octopi."
2018-10-29 World's Largest Deep-sea Octopus Nursery Discovered (NatGeo)
Scientists discovered over 1,000 female Muusoctopus robustus, many brooding eggs, in a shimmering "octopus garden" that may be seeping natural gas or hot water.
2018-10-29 Rare Dumbo Octopus Filmed Swimming in The Deep Ocean (ScienceAlert)
Deep in the waters of the Pacific Ocean, off the coast of California, marine scientists have been lucky enough to capture a rare and wonderful sight: a sweet Dumbo octopus (Grimpoteuthis) going about its business.
2018-10-26 That Adorable Baby Octopus Is Actually a Pea-Sized Killer (Earther)
An image of a pea-sized cephalopod (O. cyanea or O. ornatus) has been making the rounds this week as the result of how cute this tiny squish appears at first glance. But make no mistake, even a baby octopus can be a cold-hearted killer—and there's photographic evidence to prove it.
2018-10-17 Elucidating Cuttlefish Camouflage (Max-Planck-Gesellschaft)
Computational image analysis of behaving cuttlefish reveals principles of control and development of a biological invisibility cloak. Cephalopods control camouflage by the direct action of their brain onto specialized skin cells called chromatophores, that act as biological color "pixels" on a soft skin display. Cuttlefish do not match their local environment pixel by pixel. Instead, they seem to extract, through vision, a statistical approximation of their environment, and use these heuristics to select an adaptive camouflage out of a presumed large but finite repertoire of likely patterns.
2018-10-16 Video: Octopus filmed in Dutch waters for first time (Nl Times)
Hobby diver Mark Barto recorded remarkable footage of a small octopus while diving in the North Sea off the coast of Callantsoog on Saturday. His footage turned out to be even more remarkable than he thought - this is the first time ever a live common octopus was recorded in Dutch waters.
2018-10-09 Video: Beloved Octopus "Whisperer" Honored (CBS Boston)
84-year-old Wilson Menashi has been volunteering at the New England Aquarium for 25 years. A large portion of his over 8,000 volunteer hours have been spent caring for the aquarium's octopuses. In addition to becoming the first volunteer to ever touch an octopus, Menashi has created deep bonds of trust and affection with his cephalopod companions.
2018-09-20 Octopuses Given Ecstasy for Science -- But Is That Ethical? (NatGeo)
According to scientists at Johns Hopkins University, when given MDMA, commonly known as Ecstasy, California two-spot octopuses react in much the same way as humans, leading them (the human researchers) to conclude that our brains and octopus brains are wired the same for certain social behaviors. But was it okay to give unsuspecting octopuses a mood-altering drug?
2018-08-09 Another Clubhook Squid Washes Up On Oregon Coast (KOIN)
Clubhook squids (Onykia robusta) can reach a total length of 12 feet. According to the Seaside Aquarium, it's about 9 feet in length and a male. The beak was already gone, but a few tissue samples were taken and will be sent to Alaska to further study the diet of sperm whales. This is the second clubhook squid that has washed ashore in recent weeks.
2018-05-18 Octopuses Are Not Aliens, But Boy Are They A Bunch Of Beautiful Weirdos (PopSci)
Octopuses seem to be particularly prone to alien theories. The most recent is thanks to a group of scientists—none of whom study zoology and many of whom don't even study anything biological. See also: No, Octopuses Don't Come From Outer Space.
2018-04-18 Hundreds Of Purple Octopus Moms Are Super Weird, & They're Doomed (Live Science)
What's the story behind this mysterious, doomed gathering of Muuscoctopus mothers, huddling uncomfortably in volcano-warmed waters and guarding eggs that will never hatch?
2018-04-17 How the Squid Lost Its Shell (Video) (PBS Eons)
The ancestors of modern, squishy cephalopods like the octopus and the squid all had shells. In ancient times, their shell was their greatest asset but it eventually proved to be their biggest weakness.
2017-12-27 A New Species Of Giant Octopus Has Been Hiding In Plain Sight (Earther)
Some previously assumed Giant Pacific Octopuses (Enteroctopus dofleini) have been found to be a separate species, recently dubbed the Frilled Giant Octopus.
2017-11-24 Toys Wanted For Scarborough Octopus (Yorkshire Coast Radio)
Sea Life Scarborough is appealing for toys for Barbara the giant Pacific Octopus. The centre wants the public's help to fill their octopus' advent calendar with a toy every day in the run up to Christmas.
2017-11-14 Accident & Intent In An Octopuses' Garden (ABC.net.au)
"We recently published a scientific report of octopuses living together in unusual numbers at a site on the south coast of New South Wales. Then things got a little out of hand... Octlantis is not a city, and no artworks, fences, or buildings have been made."
2017-11-11 Octopus & Grouper Collaborate (Telegraph)
New footage shows octopus and grouper fish communicating and collaborating to catch prey. "These very different species have discovered that teamwork brings success."
2017-10-30 Mystery Of Octopuses Found Crawling Along Welsh Beach (Guardian)
Dozens of octopus have been spotted emerging from the ocean and crawling along the Welsh coast in a nightly pilgrimage that has perplexed people at a seaside town.
2017-09-19 Biologists Just Discovered An Underwater Octopus City And They're Calling It Octlantis (ScienceAlert)
The find in Jervis Bay, off eastern Australia suggests members of the gloomy octopus species (Octopus tetricus) are perhaps not the isolated and solitary creatures we thought they were.
2017-09-15 Strange, See-Through Squid Captured On Camera (Nautilus Live)
The Exploration Vessel Nautilus spotted the cockatoo squid (Taonius borealis) near the Juan de Fuca Canyon in the Salish Sea off of British Columbia.
2017-07-23 Extraordinary Octopus Takes To Land (video) (BBC Earth)
Video of Northern Australian octopus for whom land is no obstacle.
2017-04-06 Squid & Octopus Can Edit & Direct Their Own Brain Genes (New Scientist)
Unlike other animals, cephalopods sometimes interfere with their DNA code as it is being carried by a molecular "messenger", diversifying the proteins their cells can produce, leading to some interesting variations. The system may have produced a special kind of evolution based on RNA editing rather than DNA mutations and could be responsible for the complex behaviour and high intelligence seen in cephalopods, some scientists believe. A more technical overview.
2017-02-14 If Your Hands Could Smell, You'd Be An Octopus (KQED)
"The suckers are hands that also smell and taste. They're smelling the water with their suckers."
2017-02-13 Mismatched Eyes Help Squid Survive Ocean's Twilight Zone (Phys.org)
The "cockeyed" squid Histioteuthis heteropsis (aka strawberry squid) has one normal eye and one giant, bulging, yellow eye. The large eye is specifically adapted for gazing upwards, searching for shadows of fellow sea creatures against the rapidly fading sunlight, while the small eye is adapted for gazing downwards, scanning deeper, darker water for flashes of bioluminescence. Also: VIDEO.
2016-09-01 Cuttlefish Can Count To Five (Inkfish | Discover)
Don't look now, but Sepia pharaonis cuttlefish may be able to count better than your toddler.
2016-08-23 Shy Octopus Hides Inside Its Own Tentacles (EVNautilus)
(Video) While diving off the central California coast, the team of E/V Nautilus encountered this Flapjack Octopus (named for its ear flaps) lingering on the sea floor. Another video.
2016-08-20 'Googly-Eyed' Stubby Squid Captures Internet's Attention (NPR)
It looks like it could be a cartoon character, but it's real. And this little squid is making waves on the internet.
2016-07-05 Weird Pupils Let Octopuses See Their Colorful Gardens (UC Berkeley)
Cephalopods are colorblind -- their eyes see only black and white -- but their weirdly shaped pupils may allow them to detect and mimic color via chromatic aberration.
2016-05-23 World Octopus And Squid Populations Are Booming (Science)
New research shows that changes to marine environments are leading to a surge of cephalopods, the invertebrate group that includes octopuses, squid, and cuttlefish.
2016-04-19 Is There Really A Giant Octopus Under The Tacoma Narrows Bridge? (KUOW)
"The big octopuses, they're around," says commercial diver Kerry Donahue. "They try to scare you," he says. "Their big defense mechanism -- they get bigger than you are."
2016-04-13 Octopus Slips Out Of Aquarium Tank, Crawls Across Floor, Escapes Down Pipe To Ocean (WP)
Inky the octopus didn't even try to cover his tracks. By the time the staff at New Zealand's National Aquarium noticed that he was missing, telltale suction cup prints were the main clue to an easily solved mystery.
2016-03-02 Deep Discoverer Discovers a Very Deep, Ghostlike Octopod (NOAA)
Deep-sea, undescribed incirrate octopod, nicknamed "Casper", found 4000m deep near Hawaii, deeper than any other of its kind. Deeeep.
2015-12-24 Video Of Live Giant Squid In Japan (ANN)
More from the TONMO forum.
2015-09-18 Octopus Makes Own Quicksand To Build Burrow On Seabed (New Scientist)
The southern sand octopus (Octopus kaurna) has taken hide-and-seek to a whole new level. It shoots jets of water into the seafloor creating quicksand that allows it to vanish.
2015-08-25 Rare Nautilus Sighted For First Time In Three Decades (UW)
University of Washington Biologist Peter Ward returned from the South Pacific with news that he encountered what he considers one of the world's rarest animals, Allonautilus scrobiculatus.
2015-08-24 Octopuses Seen Throwing Things May Be Using Shells As Weapons (New Scientist)
Octopuses have been recorded gathering up armfuls of debris before taking pot shots at one another. Whether it's a case of "get off my turf" or merely "oops, didn't mean to hit you" is still a puzzle.
2015-08-13 No, An Octopus Is Not An Alien (From Quarks to Quasars)
A number of sites started running stories that seemed to imply that octopuses are aliens. Scientists were really just using a clever metaphor to highlight the unique complexity of the octopus genome i.e., octopuses aren't really from outer space and their DNA is not utterly unique.
2015-08-12 Octopuses Filmed Mating Face-to-Face -- A First (Nat. Geo.)
A new study of the Pacific striped octopus reveals never-before-seen behaviors that have stunned scientists. "The beak-to-beak mating is just crazy nutty." Paper in PLOS ONE: "Behavior and Body Patterns of the Larger Pacific Striped Octopus".
2015-08-12 Octopus' Sophistication Driven By Hundreds Of Previously Unknown Genes (Ars Technica)
Researchers have now sequenced the genome of the California two-spot octopus (Octopus bimaculoides). Paper in Nature: "The octopus genome and the evolution of cephalopod neural and morphological novelties".
2015-05-20 Octopus Can See With Its Skin (UCSB PR)
A new study demonstrates that an octopus's skin possesses the same cellular mechanism for detecting light as its eyes do. (Paper abstract.)
2015-04-12 Octopus Takes Photos Of Her Aquarium Visitors (CNET)
The octopus, named Rambo, has been trained to take photos of visitors who stop by to see her at Kelly Tarlton's Sea Life Aquarium in Auckland, NZ
2015-01-22 Japanese Fisherman Capture Live Giant Squid (Business Insider)
Local fisherman have reported a disturbing rise in giant squid catches in the past year or so. They say the squid are coming closer to the surface.
2015-01-21 Jumbo Squid Speak by "Flashing" Each Other (NatGeo)
Giant Humboldt squid speak to each other in flashes of color, their whole bodies quickly changing from red to white and back again. But just what they're communicating has long been a mystery to scientists. Now, new video analysis is allowing marine biologists to begin cracking this jumbo squid's code.
2014-07-28 Social Octopus Species Shatters Beliefs About Ocean Dwellers (NatGeo)
Most octopuses are loners, but larger Pacific striped octopuses display surprising social behaviors -- living in groups of possibly up to 40, laying multiple egg clutches, and mating face-to-face and sucker-to-sucker.
2014-05-15 Scientists Discover How Octopuses Avoid Tying Themselves In Knots (io9)
There are many things that make the octopus a strange creature, but one of them is that each of its eight arms has an essentially infinite number of positions, and yet each arm operates independently. How does an octopus keep from tying itself in knots?
2014-04-29 Scientists Learn How to Put an Octopus to Sleep (Scientific American)
While we are pretty adept at anesthetizing mice and monkeys, the mollusk body works so differently that human researchers are sill largely in the dark.
2013-12-13 What It's Like to Be an Octopus (LiveScience)
Imagine for a moment what it might be like to be an octopus. You're smart. You might even be able to use tools. But most of your brain cells are packed into your limbs.
2013-10-24 How Do You Incubate Cuttlefish Eggs (Monterey Bay Aquarium)
For $2.50 and "a day in the life of one volunteer," Aquarist Bret Grasse makes a better bubbler out of soda bottles, plastic tubing and silicone glue.
2013-10-03 Beachgoers In Spain Discover 30-foot Giant Squid (GrindTV)
Carcass found in Cantabria is that of the mysterious and fabled Architeuthis Dux.
2013-08-27 Even Severed Octopus Arms Have Smart Moves (Sci. Am.)
Octopus's arms are not entirely under the control of the octopus's brain. And new research shows just how deep their independence runs -- even when they are detached.
2013-08-27 Noodle-Armed Deep-sea Squid Mystery Solved (Nat. Geo.)
New video shows Grimalditeuthis bonplandi -- a deep-sea squid -- wiggle tentacle tips to attract their meals.
2013-08-19 Photos: Baby Nautilus (ZooBorns)
The first baby Nautilus for Birch Aquarium at Scripps.
2013-02-08 Japanese Researchers Confirm Squid Can Fly (AFP)
"There were always witnesses and rumours that said squid were seen flying, but no one had clarified how they actually do it. We have proved that it really is true." Neon Flying Squid can fly more than 30 metres through the air at up to 11.2 metres per second.
2013-01-08 The Kraken Wakes: First Images Of Giant Squid Filmed In Deep Ocean (Reuters)
The images of the silvery, three-meter long cephalopod, looming out of the darkness nearly 1 km below the surface, were taken last July near the Ogasawara islands, 1,000 km south of Tokyo. video excerpt.
2012-11-02 Diver Surprised By Reaction To His Octopus Hunt (Seattle Times)
A Maple Valley diver said he didn't know it would upset people when he hunted a giant Pacific octopus at Cove 2 in West Seattle. More with pictures.
2012-10-12 Octopus Attacks Aquabiking Woman (UPI)
A woman participating in an aquabike lesson in France said she was attacked by an octopus that immobilized her legs with its tentacles.
2012-10-18 Rare Octopus Caught Near Los Angeles (UPI)
A rare octopus from the tropics (a female argonaut octopus or paper nautilus) has surfaced in Southern California, scooped up by a fisherman off the coast near Los Angeles, marine aquarium officials said.
2012-10-18 Deadly Octopus Flashes Bright Blue Warning with Super-Reflective Skin (Scientific American)
The diminutive blue-ringed octopus (Hapalochlaena lunulata) makes its roughly 60 blue rings that cover its arms and body glow especially bright. Biologists at Woods Hole filmed the octopuses at super-slow speeds to find out how they do it. (Video)
2012-09-26 Vampire Squid From Hell Eats Faeces To Survive Depths (New Scientist)
While most vampires prefer their prey alive, vampire squid (Vampyroteuthis infernalis) are rather less demanding. They munch on any dead plankton, crustacean remains and faecal matter that happens to pass by, making them the only cephalopod not to hunt living prey.
2012-09-24 Drastic Loss In Giant-Cuttlefish Colony (Herald Sun)
Giant Australian cuttlefish numbers at Point Lowly in the Upper Spencer Gulf have plummeted and authorities are at a loss to explain the cause of what could be the end of one of the world's most spectacular natural wonders.
2012-08-23 Insane In The Chromatophores (Backyard Brains)
Researchers stimulate the rapid color-changing cells of longfin inshore squid using a suction electrode and Cypress Hill (includes video).
2012-08-21 Octopuses Gain Consciousness (According to Scientists' Declaration) (SciAm: Octopus Chronicles)
"The weight of evidence indicates that humans are not unique in possessing the neurological substrates that generate consciousness. Non-human animals, including all mammals and birds, and many other creatures, including octopuses, also possess these neurological substrates."
2012-06-05 Anglers Find Giant Squid (Daily Telegraph .au)
A giant squid, one of the most mysterious and least understood of marine creatures, has been found floating off the New South Wales south coast.
2012-05-21 Jurassic Squid Ink Same as Modern Squid Ink (Discovery)
Ink from 160-million-year-old giant squid is essentially identical to today's squid ink. The discovery suggests that the ink and the ink-screen escape mechanism of squid have not evolved much (if at all) since the Jurassic Period.
2012-03-31 Photo: Nautiluses Munching On Chicken (Paul Allen)
Billionaire uses personal underwater ROV, deployed from his megayacht, the Octopus, to feed chicken to nautiluses; posts pic on Twitter.
2012-02-21 Cuttlefish Have The Most Acute Polarisation Vision (The Fish Site)
Cuttlefish and their colourblind cousins, squid and octopus, see polarized light invisible to humans, giving them a covert communication channel. A study found that cuttlefish were much more sensitive to polarization than previously thought. Study: High-resolution polarisation vision in a cuttlefish (Current Biology)
2012-02-20 Squid Can Fly To Save Energy (Nature)
Photographic study shows that cephalopods travel faster in air than in water.
2012-01-05 Octopuses Rewrite Their RNA To Beat The Cold (ScienceNOW)
An octopus dwelling in the frigid waters of the Antarctic uses a trick called RNA editing to customize crucial nervous system proteins to work at low temperatures.
2012-01-05 Tiny Cling-Ons May Help Cuttlefish (Adelaide Now)
A parasite is helping scientists discover if Spencer Gulf, AU cuttlefish are unique or they mingle with others. The scientists are concerned cuttlefish are threatened by development in the gulf.
2011-11-24 Video: Octopus Walks on Land at Fitzgerald Marine Reserve (YouTube)
2011-11-17 Vanishing Jumbo Squid Mystery Solved (Live Science)
Humboldt squid that all but vanished from their usual haunts in 2010 moved north in search of food. And it seems the squid like their new feeding grounds.
2011-11-10 Squid And Octopus Switch On Camouflage (BBC)
Scientists have discovered how two marine creatures are able to rapidly "switch" their colours -- from transparent to reddish brown.
2011-11-09 Squid Who Make Glue (Squid A Day)
The squid genus Idiosepius, which contains only a handful of very small, very adorable species, have this habit of gluing themselves to seaweed, to hide from predators. Follow-up: Delving Into The Nature Of Squid Glue
2011-10-27 Deep Intellect: Inside the mind of the octopus (Orion)
Many times I have stood mesmerized by an aquarium tank, wondering, as I stared into the horizontal pupils of an octopus's large, prominent eyes, if she was staring back at me -- and if so, what was she thinking?
2011-10-10 Giant Kraken Lair Discovered (GSA)
Did a cruelly intelligent giant octopus from the Triassic create a self-portrait with the bones of its ichthyosaur prey? Not everyone is convinced.
2011-08-15 Octopus Is A Sucker For Ice Lollies (The Packet)
Fishy flavoured lollies are the order of the day for one giant octopus in Newquay. Mr Tickle, who lives at the Blue Reef Aquarium in the town, has been given the snacks as part of an ongoing environmental enrichment programme.
2011-08-11 Flight Of The Argonauts (Deep Sea News)
Paper nautiluses (argonauts) are free-swimming octopuses with fragile white shells that the females secrete in order to carry around their eggs.
2011-08-10 Small Squid Produce Bigger Sperm (BBC)
Smaller squid make up for their diminutive size, and reduced sexual status, by producing bigger sperm. They produce the outsized sperm in a bid to thwart the chances of larger male squid rivals impregnating females.
2011-06-07 Shape-Shifting Cuttlefish Use Visual Clues (Geekosystem)
New research from the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, MA has demonstrated for the first time that Cuttlefish also change their physical position to make them appear inconspicuous to predators.
2011-06-06 8-Legged Mom Has 50,000 Babies: 2-Legged Woman Watches (NPR)
A couple of years ago, not far from the shore, Laurynn Evans discovered a giant Pacific octopus having babies (video).
2011-05-16 How Can A Colorblind Animal Change Its Colors? (Physorg)
Cephalopod eyes lack color perception, thus the vexing question of how they achieve effective camouflage while being colorblind still remains.
2011-05-13 Is The Giant Squid The New Giant Panda? (Wonder Monkey)
Can a 13-metre long beastie, all tentacles and suckers, be a conservation icon for our time?
2011-05-12 An Octopus Knows Who's Who (LiveScience)
When one octopus meets another octopus, the leggy animal remembers the acquaintance for at least a day, a new study indicates.
2011-05-10 Ghostly 'Winged' Octopus Caught on Camera (Wired)
The Grimpoteuthis bathynectes octopus, also nicknamed the Dumbo octopus, was filmed with an HD video camera at a depth of more than 2,000 metres [6,500 feet] about 200 miles off the coast of Oregon.
2011-04-28 NASA To Launch Squids Into Space (Treehugger)
Among several experiments to be carried aboard the shuttle Endeavor's final voyage into space is one designed by Florida high school and college students to test the effects of microgravity on squid embryos. Summary from students' site.
2011-04-25 I Know My Neighbour: Individual Recognition In Octopus (Cephalove)
Most species of shallow water octopuses appear to be pretty solitary animals. It might surprise us, then, to learn that octopuses (Octopus vulgaris) can recognize other individual octopuses.
2011-04-19 Tiny Octopuses Become Aquarium Attraction (SWNS)
Visitors to an aquarium need microscopes to see the latest attraction -- hundreds of baby octopuses which are are so small they can swim through the head of a needle.
2011-04-17 Prof's Squid Research May Help Infections (Las Cruces Sun-News)
Bobtail squid can create a beam of light produced by bacteria in an organ inside their bodies. This provides a model system to examine modes of infection and pathogenesis between animals, bacteria and their habitats.
2011-04-12 Octopuses And Squids Are Damaged By Noise Pollution (Scientific American)
Not only can squids and octopuses sense sound, but as it turns out, these and other cephalopods might be harmed by growing noise pollution in our oceans -- from sources such as offshore drilling, ship motors, sonar use and pile driving.
2011-04-11 The Octopus, The Maze, And Why It Matters (Cephalove)
Previous research showed that octopus arms are capable of movement on their own, finding food by touch. Now a study shows that octopuses can use visual information to direct the movements of their arms, and that they seem to get more accurate with practice.
2011-03-26 Freshwater Squid... (Squid A Day)
The brief squid (Lolliguncula brevis) may be the most freshwater-tolerant of cephalopods. It lives all along the east coast of the Americas, from New Jersey through the Gulf of Mexico and all the way to Rio de Janeiro. It is particularly fond of bays and estuaries, where salinity is reduced due to freshwater input from rivers.
2011-03-25 Darla's Pregnancy Puzzles Octopus Experts (Times Colonist)
A surprise discovery Thursday of five fertilized eggs, among more than 30,000 laid by Darla the giant Pacific octopus at the Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre in Sidney, BC, has rocked commonly held beliefs about octopus breeding cycles.
2011-03-25 Giant Octopus Rescued From Bay Area Crabbing Nets (Care2)
Aquarium of the Bay works with local fishermen to change their cephalopodicidal behavior by purchasing accidentally trapped octopuses for its near-shore tunnel exhibit, where they help strengthen visitors' connection to the animals.
2011-03-23 Squid Have Mirror Eyeballs! (Squid A Day)
It's one of the most persistent problems in camouflage: how do you hide your eyes? A new study shows how squid have turned their eyes into mirrors.
2011-03-08 Self-Injecting Squid Sperm (Squid A Day)
Little-understood hypodermic insemination by difficult-to-observe giant squid simulated in vitro using more common Loliginid squid spermatophores, which can inject themselves into muscle tissue.
2011-03-04 Ammonoids Trapped Parasites In Pearls (Wired)
Everybody knows how oysters make pearls. As it turns out, ammonoids -- the extinct, coil-shelled cousins of modern squid and nautilus -- made pearls, too, but they did so to stave off the onslaught of prehistoric parasites.
2011-02-11 Rare Octopus In Florida Waters (Video) (WPLG)
It's a Blanket Octopus. Also in Florida: Beach visitors rescue washed-up squid.
2011-02-10 Newly Discovered Pheromone Linked To Aggressive Behavior In Squid (MBL)
Scientists have identified a pheromone produced by female squid that triggers immediate and dramatic fighting in male squid that come into contact with it.
2011-02-02 How Squid Hear (LiveScience)
It's all in the motion of the ocean. "They are detecting themselves moving back and forth with the sound wave," said marine biologist T. Aran Mooney. He compared a squid in the ocean being jostled by a sound wave to a piece of fruit suspended in Jell-O. "If you jiggle the Jell-O, the whole block of Jell-O is moving with the fruit."
2011-01-21 Tribute Statue To Paul The 'Psychic' Octopus Unveiled (National Post)
It's not everyday an octopus is cremated and put on display for the public to pay homage to. But, Paul wasn't a normal octopus.
2011-01-20 Unknown Baculite Fossil Found In Peru (AFP)
Paleontologists say they discovered the 85-million-year-old fossil of a previously unknown [Baculite cephalopod] species from the Cretaceous era in the high jungle region of northeastern Peru.
2010-12-13 Meet The Piglet Squid (Practical Fishkeeping)
The Piglet squid, Helicocranchia pfefferi, is roughly the size of a small avocado, and is common in the deep water of virtually all oceans, living at depths of around 100m/320ft.
2010-12-03 Ammonites Were Probably Eaten By Fellow Cephalopods (Physorg)
Fossilized ammonites found with bite marks in similar places on their shells suggest they were eaten by other cephalopods such as beaked squid.
2010-11-18 Do Cuttlefish Change Colour At Night? (Practical Fishkeeping)
We all know cuttlefish are capable of changing their colour pattern to mimic that of the substrate for camouflage, but can they do it at night?
2010-10-21 Thinking Like An Octopus (Harvard Gazette)
If you were an octopus, would you view the world from eight different points of view? Nine? The answer may depend on how many brains an octopus has.
2010-11-15 New Large Squid Species Discovered (Live Science)
A newfound species of large squid has been discovered from an expedition to mountains submerged in the Indian Ocean. More with pics.
2010-10-26 Paul The World Cup Octopus Dies In His Tank In Germany (BBC)
So farewell... Paul the octopus, famous for predicting football results.
2010-10-21 Daring Cuttlefish Flees Lab Tank For Freedom Of Lough (Belfast Telegraph)
Scientists probing the shores of Strangford Lough found a tiny cuttlefish not seen since the 1980s, so they decided to hand it to the aquarium at Exploris in Portaferry. But the intrepid cephalopod made a daring Great Escape.
2010-10-19 Inka The Octopus Is In The Halloween Spirit (Hastings Observer)
An octopus at a Hastings aquarium is already getting into the spirit of Halloween -- by playing with a pumpkin.
2010-10-14 New Discoveries In North America's Great Plains Bring Ammonites To Life (Science Centric)
Although ammonites -- shelled mollusks closely related to modern day nautilus and squids -- have been extinct for 65 million years, newly published data based on 35 years of research is providing invaluable insights into their paleobiology.
2010-10-13 Squid Studies Provide Valuable Insights Into Hearing Mechanisms (WHOI)
The ordinary squid, Loligo pealii, may be on the verge of becoming a scientific superstar, providing clues about the origin and evolution of the sense of hearing.
2010-08-30 The Case for Cephalopod Consciousness (Cephalove)
Part three of a series from Psychology and Pharmacology student Mike Lisieski on evidence for consciousness in cephalopods.
2010-08-26 Octopus Mimics Flatfish And Flaunts It (CAS)
Using DNA sequences to construct a genealogy for the mimic octopus and more than 35 of its relatives, the researchers ascertained the order in which the T. mimicus lineage evolved several key traits allowing it to impersonating a flatfish. Video of the mimic octopus in action.
2010-08-18 Giant Squid: How Do You Film One? (Discovery)
A team of production companies, including the Discovery Channel, have begun a major effort to find and film the giant squid.
2010-08-07 Massive Squid Found On New Zealand Beach (Sunday Star Times)
A rare squid washed up dead on a Wellington beach this morning with experts saying they believe it had been attacked in the sea.
2010-08-02 Fact or Fiction: Can a Squid Fly Out of the Water? (Scientific American)
To escape predators in the ocean, these cephalopods will speed away by shooting a jet of water. But can squid use that behavior to take to the air and control their trajectories?
2010-07-29 Jumbo Squid Flash, Flail In First Ever Squid-Cam Video (National Geographic)
Squid also shatter Kevlar plates; might have world's strongest bite.
2010-07-29 Paul The Psychic Octopus To Get His Own Movie (Mirror)
The Murder of Paul the Octopus will hit the big screen next month. The film focuses on Paul's amazing winning streak and explores "how he acquired his ability". Also: Iranian President Ahmadinejad denounces Paul the Octopus.
2010-07-25 Deriq, Star Of Octocam, Has Died (Hatfield Marine Science Center)
We regret to announce that Deriq, the giant Pacific octopus that had been entertaining and engaging visitors to the HMSC Visitor Center since January -- and Internet fans around the world since early June -- died on July 25.
2010-07-21 Scientists Tap Into Antarctic Octopus Venom (U of Melbourne)
Researchers have collected venom from octopuses in Antarctica for the first time, significantly advancing our understanding of the properties of venom as a potential resource for drug-development.
2010-07-15 Paul The Octopus Set For Sensational Transfer To Madrid Aquarium (Guardian)
Negotiations have begun to bring Paul the psychic octopus to Madrid after he correctly predicted Spain's World Cup final victory. Also: Paul's popularity is causing people to want octopuses as pets, but experts caution that they are difficult to keep and demand could endanger species.
2010-07-08 Octopus Home Again After Science Center Stint (Kitsap Sun)
Floating in the middle of Liberty Bay, director of the Poulsbo Marine Science Center Patrick Mus kissed "Mr. Bob," the giant Pacific octopus, goodbye on Thursday. Includes touching photo of goodbye kiss.
2010-07-07 Paul The Psychic Octopus Remains Undefeated, Receives Death Threats (Fanhouse)
With Spain's 1-0 victory over Germany in Wednesday's semi-final World Cup match, Paul is now a perfect 6 for 6 in predicting winners. Not all are pleased.
2010-07-07 Scientists Discover Mating Habits Of Deep-Sea Squid (BBC)
The mating habits of deep-sea squid have been revealed for the first time after Falklands' Fisheries scientists discover a male squid exhibiting post-mortem "sexual agitation".
2010-06-30 63 Cuttlefish Stolen (Whyalla News)
Three out-of-towners who allegedly stole 63 cuttlefish from the prohibited area at Stoney Point (Australia) will face a AU$345 fine each after expiation notices were issued.
2010-06-25 Solving The Mystery Of The Humboldt Squid (KATU)
Oregon State University researchers need fishermen's help to try and solve the mystery of the carnivorous Humboldt squid, specifically why are the so-called 'red devils' migrating to the Oregon coast and why are their numbers on the rise
2010-06-23 Paul The Octopus Predicts A German Advance (Spiegel)
In the unreliable field of predicting World Cup results, a German octopus has pulled ahead by a tentacle. He sees Germany moving out of the group stage.
2010-06-18 Austrian Research Team Deciphered Habits Of Ammonites (Life PR)
(Translated from German) Researchers analyzed the oxygen and carbon isotopes from shells of ammonites, extinct relatives of the squid, and showed they lived at different depths and different specialized habitats of the primordial oceans.
2010-06-17 Marine Center Reports Death Of Octopus (WJAR)
Ruby the octopus of Narragansett Bay. Born 2009. Died 2010. R.I.P. Opening jars in Octopus Heaven now.
2010-06-10 OctoCam! (OSU)
Watch Deriq the giant Pacific octopus live 24/7 from his home at the Hatfield Marine Science Center at Oregon State U.! Also read their FAQ.
2010-05-29 Reconstructive Sushi (The World)
Surgeons hunched over a gelatinous carcass of a 12-foot Pacific giant squid, laid out like a wet dress on a stainless steel table outside the Oregon Institute of Marine Biology. Their mission: Stitch up its battle wounds and reattach its head.
2010-05-26 Mystery Fossil Was Actually A 500-Million-Year-Old Squid Relative (Not Exactly Rocket Science)
In the Canadian Rockies, a horde of 91 squid-like animals (Nectocaris pteryx) have risen from the depths, millions years after their demise. Also: "Mother of all squid!" (Pharyngula)
2010-05-18 Scientists Solve Millennia-Old Mystery About The Argonaut Octopus (Not Exactly Rocket Science)
The argonauts are a group of octopuses unlike any other. The females secrete a thin, white, brittle shell called the paper nautilus. Scientists have long wondered about the purpose of the shell.
2010-05-17 Tiny Octopus Caught Off Cornwall Takes Up Residence In Aquarium (The Packet)
Blue Reef curator Matt Slater said: "Sadie is definitely the smallest curled octopus I have ever come across and it's probably the fact that she is so tiny that saved her from injury."
2010-05-07 Monster Colossal Squid Is Slow Not Fearsome Predator (BBC)
The world's largest invertebrate is not a fast and voracious predator as previously thought, say scientists. The researchers' calculations reveal the colossal squid survives on only a small amount of prey.
2010-05-06 Baby Cuttlefish Born At Newquay Aquarium (The Packet)
Newquay's Blue Reef Aquarium is celebrating the arrival of more than a dozen baby cuttlefish this week. This is the eighth year in a row the aquarium have successfully reared cuttlefish.
2010-04-16 Octopus Flees With Camera (Stuff.co.nz)
What can be best described as a kleptomaniac Octopus was videoed as it stole an underwater camera off the coast of Wellington. Includes video shot by the octopus.
2010-04-16 Fossil Of Giant 100-million-year-old Squid Found In Mexico (Earthtimes)
"It is a giant squid similar to the sepias we have in the seas these days, but it is a new species that lived in the Cuatrocienagas area 100 million years ago, in the Cretaceous period, when the whole of the northeast, including this area, was covered in water."
2010-04-09 Octopus vs. Sea Lion -- First Ever Video (National Geographic)
Crittercam footage shows sea lion hunting and eating a large octopus.
2010-04-09 Squid Invasion Hitting Oregon Coast (The Oregonian)
Scientists say as many as 4 million Humboldt squid could inhabit an area of 30 square miles. Also: Humboldt Squid Seem to Be Thriving -- Thanks to Ocean Dead Zones.
2010-04-09 Northern Squid Moving Further North As Oceans Warm (Winnipeg Free Press)
Climate change is causing the Northern Squid to migrate farther north, a University of Manitoba researcher reports in this week's Polar Research journal.
2010-04-08 Fatal Giant Squid Attack Off Nanaimo A Fairy Story (Globe and Mail)
British Columbia diving industry fears fallout from bad press about Humboldt squid attack.
2010-04-04 Chef Finds Octopus With Extra Leg (AP)
Nineopus. Novopus. Freak of nature.
2010-04-01 Vote For Octopus' Name (Smithsonian)
The octopus, a dignitary from the Republic of Cascadia, is on display at the US National Zoo in Washington DC. The four names you can vote on are: Octavius, Ceph, Olympus, or Vancouver. Polls close April 7. UPDATE: "Octavius" won.
2010-03-26 Cuttlefish Seen Laying Eggs On A Seahorse Off Spain (BBC)
Researchers believe they have filmed the European cuttlefish laying eggs in the wild for the first time. On a seahorse, no less!
2010-03-12 HDTV Reveals Brainy Octopus Has No Personality (New Scientist)
Octopuses make for discerning TV viewers: it seems they prefer high-definition to traditional cathode ray images (CRT). What's more, the first study using video to trick octopuses, finds that they may be the Jekyll and Hydes of the oceans: aggressive one day, shrinking violets the next.
2010-03-12 Seattle Giant Octopus Expert Tells All In New Book (Seattle Times)
How it started that Roland Anderson became one of the world's top experts on the giant Pacific octopus the largest octopus in the world, and home here in Puget Sound was when he worked as the nightshift biologist at the Seattle Aquarium.
2010-03-08 Giant Squid Get Radical Plastic Surgery (New Scientist)
In 2004, a pair of Architeuthis dux were sent from New Zealand to a plastination facility in Dalian, China, to be preserved by anatomist Gunther von Hagens.
2010-03-07 Leviathans May Battle In Remote Depths (LA Times)
In what could be the ultimate marine smack-down, great white sharks off the California coast may be migrating 1,600 miles west to do battle with creatures that rival their star power: giant squids.
2010-03-06 Giant Octopuses Weren't The World's Best Wrestlers (Seattle Times)
As quirky as the Pacific Northwest is, the World Octopus Wrestling Championships held in Tacoma in the mid-1960s qualify as one of this region's most unusual events.
2010-03-05 New Species Of Cuttlefish Discovered (The Hindu)
With this species, sepia vecchioni, the number of cuttlefish species recorded in the Indian seas has gone up to 15.
2010-03-03 Ancient Octopuses & Squid Lecture (Courtenay Museum)
International fossil octopus expert Dr. Dirk Fuchs will be giving a lecture at the Courtenay Museum on Vancouver Island in British Columbia on Friday, March 5th at 7pm.
2010-03-03 Glowing Squid Illuminate Immune System Function (PhysOrg.com)
Tiny Hawaiian bobtail squid use an unusual form of camouflage: they pack colonies of glowing bacteria into their bodies. Spencer Nyholm studies these invertebrates to understand how immune systems work.
2010-03-03 Scientists Report Octopus Imitating Flounder (PhysOrg.com)
Macrotritopus defilippi mimicking the shape, speed, and behavior of flounder swimming (with video).
2010-02-26 Three Pound Baby Giant Pacific Octopus will Soon Test Smithsonian's National Zoo Personnel (Zoo & Aquarium Visitor)
"The giant Pacific octopus is the 'giant panda' of invertebrates". Also: the National Zoo site has an OctopusCam
2010-02-21 Giant Squid Washed Ashore In Japan (Japan Times)
A 3.4-meter-long dead squid has been found washed ashore on the coast of Niigata, a local aquarium said Saturday. Some Japanese articles with pictures: Yomiuri, MSN.
2010-02-20 Understanding Human Threats To The Earth's Largest Habitat - The Deep Sea (MBARI)
Includes video of Vampyroteuthis infernalis, the vampire squid from hell.
2010-02-15 Octopus At Biomes Shows Off Intelligent Behavior (NBC 10)
His name is "Ruby" and he can open a jar, underwater, all by himself.
2010-02-04 Scientist Aims To Break Squid Record (NZ Herald)
Dr Steve O'Shea from AUT University is attempting to break his own world record for rearing deep sea squid in captivity. His goal is to one day raise a giant squid in a tank.
2010-02-03 Giant Squids Lure California Fishing Enthusiasts (NPR)
An invasion of jumbo squids off the Southern California coast has fishing enthusiasts dashing for their boats. The squids are huge -- up to 60 pounds and 5 feet long -- and, when hooked, they put up a big fight, much to the delight of nighttime anglers.
2010-01-19 In Sync: Squid, Glowing Companions March In Genetic Harmony (UW-Madison)
With the help of a diminutive Pacific Ocean squid and the bioluminescent bacteria that colonize its light-emitting, predator-fooling organ, scientists may have found a key to how animal hosts and their microbial symbionts maintain a healthy, rhythmic coexistence.
2010-01-18 Storm Leaves Cuttlefish Graveyard (Yarmouth Mercury)
Thanks to recent storms and the wind direction, hundreds of cuttlebones, the remnants of cuttlefish, have been washed ashore at Happisburgh (Norfolk, UK), to the north-west of the metal beach access steps.
2010-01-12 Deadly Octopus Falls In Girl's Bath (Geelong Advertiser)
Six-year-old Holly Smith couldn't believe her eyes when a blue-ringed octopus dropped into her bathtub.
2010-01-06 Cuttlefish Fight (ABC.au)
The Brawlla in Whyalla: Giant Australian Cuttlefish vs. Government Salt-Vampires.
2010-01-03 Thousands Of Dead Octopuses Wash Up On Portugal Beach (BBC)
The authorities have warned the public not to eat them. (Also among the dead octopuses were 500 kg of fish and a human leg wearing a boot.)
2010-01-03 Small Rare Sea Creature Generates A Lot Of Interest (Inside Bay Area)
Aquatic biologist Richard Ross spent years learning to breed unusual sea creatures called dwarf cuttlefish for fun in his Alameda home. Now Bay Area -- and the rest of the country -- is benefiting from his expertise.
2009-12-21 Octopus Found In Cornish Crab Pot (BBC)
A fisherman from Cornwall has hauled up a rare Mediterranean octopus in one of his crab pots. It is named Inka.
2009-12-19 Squid Invasions Signal Changes In The Pacific Ocean (CSM)
Some Fish Stock Decline as Jumbo Squid Migrate to New Waters.
2009-12-14 Octopus Snatches Coconut And Runs (BBC)
Underwater footage reveals that Indonesian veined octopuses scoop up halved coconut shells before scampering away with them so they can later use them as shelters. Also: Tool-Using Octopus: Coconut Shells Become Body Armor & Tool Use Found in Octopuses.
2009-12-10 Large Squid Strand On Oregon Coast, Then Freeze (Oregon Coast Beach Connection)
A large number of Humboldt Squid are stranding on Oregon beaches and then becoming frozen in the sand because of temperatures in the 20's along the coast.
2009-11-12 Steinhart Aquarium Successfully Breeds Dwarf Cuttlefish (Zoo & Aquarium Visitor)
Anchored to an algae-covered rock in a 120-gallon tank at the California Academy of Sciences' Steinhart Aquarium, a cluster of inky-colored cuttlefish eggs is beginning to swell -- evidence of success for the Academy's new captive breeding program for dwarf cuttlefish, Sepia Bandensis.
2009-10-29 Quick Thinking Saved The Life Of Stranded Octopus (South Wales Echo)
Two South Wales families who discovered a stranded octopus on a South Wales beach almost certainly saved the creature's life.
2009-10-28 Moby Dick Comes To Life (Daily Mail)
Ultra-rare images of a colossal sperm whale feeding on a giant squid.
2009-10-04 Theories Abound On Mass Strandings Of Squid Off Vancouver Island Coast (Canwest)
Two mass strandings of Humboldt squid in the last two months on the West Coast have locals asking the question no one seems to be able to answer: why is this happening?
2009-09-25 Squid Warning On Vancouver Island (CBC)
Dozens of Humboldt squid have washed up on Tofino, B.C., beaches, where an environmental group is warning people to stay away from the creatures during feeding frenzies.
2009-09-23 On-Off Iridescence In Squid (RSC)
Studies on iridescent proteins found in the skin of squid are helping scientists to understand how the creatures change their appearance to camouflage themselves in the shifting light of the open ocean. The research probes the control mechanisms that squid use to turn these 'reflectin' proteins on and off.
2009-09-22 U.S. Scientists Net Giant Squid In Gulf Of Mexico (Reuters)
Scientists unexpectedly netted a 19.5-foot (5.9-meter) giant squid off the coast of Louisiana, the Interior Department said on Monday, showing how little is known about life in the deep waters of the Gulf.
2009-09-22 "Red Devils" Wash Up On Oregon Beach (KVAL)
For some reason more and more Humboldt squid are turning up further and further north along the Pacific Coast. (Sad picture).
2009-09-14 WA State Lets Fishermen Sell Salmon-Eating Squid (AP)
Large Humboldt squid have shown up in the Strait of Juan de Fuca where commercial fishermen say they are stealing their catches. Now, the state Department of Fish and Wildlife is giving the fishermen some revenge by allowing them to sell squid they accidentally catch as they troll for salmon.
2009-09-11 Brain Scientists Misled By Squid (NPR)
For more than 50 years, scientists who study the brain have been misled by squid. They did experiments on squid nerve cells thinking that those cells were good models for the human nervous system. Now a team of scientists in Germany says the squid may not be such a good model after all.
2009-09-08 Sexy Beast: The Mysteries Of The Giant Pacific Octopus (The Stranger)
Buster is feeling shy, as usual. Buster is so acutely shy that researchers at the Seattle Aquarium can't tell whether this giant Pacific octopus is a boy or a girl.
2009-09-04 Octopus' Age No Longer A Mystery (FIS)
Researchers from Spain and Chile have succeeded in determining the age of common octopus (Octopus vulgaris) specimens captured off the coasts of Galicia and the Mediterranean Sea for the first time ever.
2009-09-04 NOAA Researchers Plan Octopus Study In Alaska Waters (Alaska Journal of Commerce)
Federal fisheries researchers plan to begin octopus studies in Alaska in the winter of 2010, to learn more about their role in the ecosystem, in the event that a commercial fishery for octopus is developed.
2009-09-03 Desalination Threat To Whyalla Giant Cuttlefish (Adelaide Now)
Whyalla's cuttlefish must be protected from the Olympic Dam desalination plant, the South Australian Tourism Commission has told the State Government.
2009-08-27 Ammonoids Thrived After Permian Extinction (NY Times)
The Permian mass extinction 252 million years ago wiped out four out of five marine genera. Most genera took five million years to recover, but the ammonoids (related to squid and octopuses) diversified explosively in the first million years after the extinction. More, including graph, from Pharyngula.
2009-08-21 Cuttlefish Adopt A Low-Key Profile During Motion (Ars Technica)
To avoid predators' attention during movement, cuttlefish opt for a more discrete, yet no less effective, form of camouflage. Also in cuttlefish news: Concern for colourful cuttlefish off Norfolk coast, UK -- Norfolkians, take part in a cuttlefish survey.
2009-08-19 Ink Found In Jurassic-Era Squid (BBC)
Palaeontologists have drawn a portrait of a 150 million-year-old squid (Belemnotheutis antiquus) with ink extracted from its fossil uncovered during a dig in Trowbridge, Wiltshire. Also, more from Nature.
2009-08-14 Mom Attacked By A Giant Squid (MomLogic)
This mom of two was attacked by a giant Humboldt squid -- and lived to tell us about it! (Includes video of local news coverage.)
2009-08-12 Iridescence In Squid (video) (CreatureCast)
Sophia Tintori and Alison Sweeney talk about how squid can change their colors in this animated video.
2009-08-05 Giant Squid Wash Up On Vancouver Island (CBC)
Dozens of Humboldt squid have washed ashore along Vancouver Island beaches in recent weeks, although a local biologist believes their deaths were likely natural.
2009-07-25 Four-Eyed Octopus Farmed In Mexico (Notimex)
(Spanish) Members of the Multidisciplinary Unit for Teaching and Research at the Faculty of Sciences, based in Sisal, Yucatan, succeeded for the first time in farm-growing four-eyed octopus (Octopus maya), a species endemic to Mexico, and claim they can scale production to 50 thousand a month. (English machine translation.)
2009-07-24 "Man-Eating" Squid Not Likely To Actually Eat Men, Researcher Says (Oregonian)
A Rhode Island scientist is coming to the defense of giant squid, saying reports of them menacing divers in the Pacific Ocean are "alarmist." Also: Shedding Light On 'Man-Eating' Squid.
2009-07-18 Piglet Squid Smiles For The Camera (Photo) (CMA)
A rarely photographed piglet squid (Helicocranchia pfefferi) was captured on film (earlier this year) at Cabrillo Marine Aquarium in San Pedro, CA.
2009-07-16 Jumbo Squid Spook Divers Off San Diego (AP)
Thousands of jumbo flying squid -- aggressive 5-foot-long sea monsters with razor-sharp beaks and toothy tentacles -- have invaded the shallow waters off San Diego, spooking scuba divers and washing up dead on tourist-packed beaches. Also: Diver Recounts Close Encounter With Squid Before Earthquake.
2009-07-14 Biologist Advises Caution In Dealing With Large Squid (Union-Tribune)
"The ones that we are getting right now have a big beak on them, like a large parrot beak. They could take a chunk of flesh off you," said John Hyde, a biologist with the National Marine Fisheries Service.
2009-07-13 Gallery Of Dime-Sized Octopus (Science Dude)
The Ocean Institute in Dana Point is now displaying 20 two-spot octopus that are only five weeks old and smaller than a dime.
2009-07-13 Massive Squid Washes Up On Beach In Quake Aftermath (NBC)
Dozens of dazed Humboldt squid which were roughly three-to-four feet long and weighed close to 40 pounds were flapping around on La Jolla Shores beach. Also: Video
2009-07-13 Baby Cuttlefish To Be Cuddled By Fishkeepers (Zoo & Aquarium Visitor)
Tynemouth's Blue Reef Aquarium is celebrating the arrival of more than a dozen baby cuttlefish this week. Also: Aquarium's PR
2009-07-04 Giant Squid Caught In West Seattle (KING 5)
Puget Sound resident reeled in what is believed to be a Humboldt Squid Friday in West Seattle.
2009-05-20 Jumbo Squid Attack The West Coast (Inside Science)
Researchers are using acoustics to track the population growth and territory expansion of the Humboldt squid.
2009-05-20 Navy Grant To Fund Probe Of Squid And Octopus Camouflage (Duke University)
Duke-led project will include underwater version of "Star Trek"-inspired "holodeck."
2009-05-15 WE HAVE LIFTOFF! (Pharyngula)
Photo of a flying squid.
2009-05-12 Color-Shifting Cuttlefish Inspire TV Screens (Discovery News)
Scientists from MIT and elsewhere are developing cuttlefish-inspired electronic ink and screens that use less than one-hundredth the power of traditional television screens.
2009-04-30 Big Cuttlefish 'At Risk' From Desalination (ABC.au)
The largest species of cuttlefish in the world is at risk from a huge desalination plant being proposed in South Australia, say researchers.
2009-04-25 During The Night, Aquarium's Octopus Visits The Lobster Tank (Zoo & Aquarium Visitor)
Blackpool Sea Life Centre Aquarium's displays supervisor Carey Duckhouse: "[Tony the octopus has] been in his tank for a few weeks now, so I suspect he just wanted to meet the neighbours."
2009-04-24 Unusual Influx Of Squids Not A Tsunami Threat (Bernama)
The presence of a large number of squids along the shores of Pantai Batu Rakit in Terengganu over the past few days is not an indication of a Tsunami threat said Malaysian Meteorology Department's Geophysics Unit Director-General Dr Mohd Rozaidi Che Abas.
2009-04-17 All Octopuses Are Venomous, Study Says (NatGeo)
According to a new study, all octopuses, cuttlefish, and some squid are venomous.
2009-04-16 Mum's The Word For This Octopus (The Leader)
Fisheries scientists at Cronulla played midwife to the first Octopus Australis to ever give birth in captivity last week.
2009-04-11 Whales Give Clues To Lives Of Elusive Giant Octopuses And Squids (Down To Earth)
A chemical analysis of the cephalopod beaks found in whale stomach helped scientists learn about the food habits and habitats of these elusive creatures.
2009-04-11 Cuttlefish Attacks Octopus (YouTube)
(Video) Diver is playing with an octopus when it is attacked and eaten by a cuttlefish. (Via Deep-Sea News.)
2009-04-09 Nature's Edge: Chameleon of the Sea (ABC news)
(Video) How cuttlefish camouflages themselves.
2009-04-02 Cephalopod Venoms (Pharyngula)
Brian Fry examined the products of the venom glands of octopus, squid, and cuttlefish, and found a range of proteins, some unique, and others familiar.
2009-03-21 Robot Octopus Will Go Where No Sub Has Gone Before (New Scientist)
The plan: build a robot with arms that work in the same way that octopuses tentacles do. Having no solid skeleton, it will be the world's first entirely soft robot, able to search the seabed with the same dexterity as the real eight-legged cephalopod. Accompanying video explains how the muscles in octopus arms work.
2009-03-18 Octopods from the Cretaceous! (Pharyngula)
Several new and spectacular cephalopod fossils from 95 million years ago have been found in Lebanon. Also: Cretaceous Octopus With Ink And Suckers -- The World's Least Likely Fossils?
2009-03-08 Giant Squid Expanding Their Dominance Of The Eastern Pacific (CBS)
Our one defence against this giant squid invasion may be to eat them as quickly as they are eating everything else.
2009-03-06 Strange Blanket Octopus (Deep Sea News)
A video of a swimming Tremoctopus or "blanket octopus".
2009-03-05 A Box Full Of Octopus (Boston Globe)
The seven-foot octopus Truman pulled a Houdini today, stuffing himself in an acrylic cube in search of food. The spectacle drew a crowd.
2009-02-27 Are Octopuses Smart? (Scientific American)
The mischievous mollusk that flooded a Santa Monica aquarium is not the first MENSA-worthy octopus.
2009-02-26 Octopus Opens Valve, Floods Santa Monica Aquarium (L.A. Times)
An octopus today managed to pry loose a water-control valve at the Santa Monica Pier Aquarium, flooding the facility with more than 200 gallons of saltwater.
2009-02-25 Giant Pacific Octopus Washes Ashore (Daily Triplicate)
Stephanie Starets-Foote was looking for agates with two of her children on the beach at the end of Fifth Street on Friday when they found the body of an octopus.
2009-02-19 Squid Studies Reveal An Adaptable Creature (Falmouth Bulletin)
The Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies is widely respected for its work on whales but Owen Nichols, director of the center's marine fisheries initiative, wanted to make a break -- the long fin inshore squid (Loligo pealeii).
2009-02-15 Suckers For Love? Not This Time (Seattle Times)
The Seattle Aquarium kicked off its annual Octopus Week with a blind date for two octopuses, Pepper and Popeye. More: video from KING 5.
2009-02-13 Octopus Survives 5 Days On The Run (ABC.au)
An octopus named Sid will be released from a New Zealand aquarium after escaping from a tank and surviving five days on the run. More: Houdini-like octupus wins its freedom. More: Legging it: Evasive octopus who has been allowed to look for love
2009-02-03 Nanostructured Squid Sucker Rings Inspire Materials Designers (Nanowerk News)
"While removing a hook from one of the meter-long squids, its tentacles wrapped tightly around my arm and inflicted significant damage as I tried to free myself. The sheer damage that these structures were capable of inflicting intrigued me greatly."
2009-01-17 Nine-Limbed Octopus Gives Aquarium A Leg Up (Mainichi Daily)
A blue-ringed octopus found off the coast of Susami is attracting attention for an unusual reason -- its nine arms.
2009-01-08 Roving Octopus To Be Freed (ODT)
Sid's great escape from the Portobello Aquarium is about to become permanent.
2009-01-07 Piglet Squid Is Always Smiling (Telegraph)
An unusual pattern of skin pigmentation means that this piglet squid always has a smile on his face.
2008-12-23 Machines Of Aggressively Loving Grace (Pharyngula)
Squid don't just make sperm: they package it up into fairly elaborate little torpedoes called spermatophores.
2008-12-22 Bizarre Squid Sex Techniques Revealed (National Geographic)
A new investigation into the tangled sex lives of deep-sea squid has uncovered a range of bizarre mating techniques.
2008-12-20 Octopuses Give Eight Thumbs Up For High-Definition TV (SMH)
Octopuses can watch television and understand at least some of what they see.
2008-12-18 Diver Wrestles Dentures From Octopus (Manly Daily)
When Manly diver David Baxter emerged from the water clutching a set of false teeth he had wrestled from the tentacles of an octopus he knew he would have trouble convincing people his tale was true.
2008-12-16 Rise In CO2 "Affects Jumbo Squid" (BBC)
Writing in the journal PNAS, researchers say the squids' lifestyle could be strongly influenced by changes in ocean acidity. Also: Climate Change May Stop Jumbo Squid Invasion & Squids May Have A Harder Time Breathing With Climate Change.
2008-12-13 Vandals Wreck World's Largest Giant Squid Collection (thinkSPAIN)
According to the president of the Centre for the Study and Protection of Marine Species (CEPESMA), vandals have caused around €24,00 euros worth of damage to the world's largest collection of giant squid.
2008-12-06 300 Octopuses Stretch 2,400 Tiny Arms In Dana Point (LA Times)
The hatchlings of the California two-spot species start life at the Ocean Institute, which is raising them for educational programs.
2008-12-02 Sam Davies "Attacked" By Large Squid (Yachting Monthly)
"It seems that as the temperature drops, the size of squid increases as well as the intensity of its ink, thus increasing the overall mess on the deck!"
2008-12-03 Squid Supremacy Must Not Rule Seas (Hattiesburg American)
Whales are the only natural enemy of large squid, who will eat anything in the ocean and multiply by the millions. Without whales, squid will devour everything in the ocean and there will be a world famine.
2008-12-01 The Radiation Of Deep Sea Octopuses (Pharyngula)
How geological and environmental events in Antarctica spurred the diversification and dispersion of deep sea octopus species across the globe.
2008-12-01 Giant Squid Stops Traffic (ABC.au)
The 500 kilogram sea creature which developed a world-wide following when it was defrosted over the Internet has just been moved to the country's national museum, with some help from a police escort.
2008-12-01 Aussie Scientists Help Crack Sea Monster Mystery (The Age)
The University of Sydney researcher, Adele Pile, and her student Dan Jones were able to help solve the mystery of the "elbowed" squid by identifying it as a rare Magnapinna, or "big fin", squid.
2008-11-24 Video: Alien-like Squid With "Elbows" Filmed at Drilling Site (National Geographic)
A mile and a half underwater, a remote control submersible's camera has captured an eerie surprise: an alien-like, long-armed, and -- strangest of all -- "elbowed" Magnapinna squid.
2008-11-12 Video: Diving With Hunting Squid (BBC)
Close-up, underwater footage of Humboldt squid hunting for fish. Red flashes are spotted, which may be a form of squid communication.
2008-11-09 Octopuses Share "Living Ancestor" (BBC)
Many of the world's deep-sea octopuses evolved from a common ancestor that still exists in the icy waters of the Southern Ocean, a study has shown. Also: Octopuses Had Antarctic Ancestor
2008-10-31 Otto The Octopus Wreaks Havoc (Telegraph)
An octopus has caused havoc in his aquarium by performing juggling tricks using his fellow occupants, smashing rocks against the glass and turning off the power by shortcircuiting a lamp.
2008-10-17 Ink Squirts Make Squid Swim For Their Lives (New Scientist)
Squid can't shout out in alarm to their comrades when danger threatens, but they certainly can squirt out, and this, it seems, serves the same purpose.
2008-10-12 Masses of Squids Washing Up on Oregon Coast (Beach Connection)
It's a small invasion from California: dozens of Humboldt squid have been washing up on the north Oregon coast this past week. Also: Dead squid washing ashore at Westport, WA.
2008-09-28 Squid Suckers (Pharyngula)
Electron micrograph of squid suckers wins honorable mention in Science & Engineering Visualization Challenge. Om nom nom nom nom nom.
2008-08-22 Giant Squid Dissected At Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History (SB Independent)
One of the ocean's most mysterious species landed in Santa Barbara this week when a giant squid arrived at the Museum of Natural History, dead and frozen since its June discovery but full of potential answers to sea scientists' most pressing questions.
2008-08-21 Colossal Squid Defies Legends (AFP)
New Zealand's mysterious colossal squid, the largest of the feared and legendary species ever caught, was not the T-Rex of the oceans but a lethargic blob, new research suggests.
2008-08-19 Dazzling Lights In Cuttlefish Courtship (Sunday Telegraph)
He stands aloof, checking out the talent. There she is, the object of his desire, confident yet demure -- the colours she chooses making her blend into the surrounds.
2008-08-13 Yarmouth Octopus Helps Boffins (Evening News 24)
Local octopus makes good! Olga the octopus from the Great Yarmouth Sea Life Centre helped scientists in the recent study into octopus handededness. Sadly, she passed away suddenly last week.
2008-08-13 Squid's Public Debut By Year's End (Stuff)
Te Papa's creature of the deep has been moved without incident to a new home -- one that brings it a step closer to being displayed at the museum later in the year.
2008-08-12 Octopuses Have Two Legs And Six Arms (Telegraph)
To most of us it has always seemed obvious that an octopus has eight arms. But experts have now revealed that this assumption is wrong -- as two of their long tentacle-like limbs are in fact legs. Also: How Many Arms Does An Octopus Have? and Experts Up In Arms After Finding Octopuses Have... Two Legs
2008-08-07 Cuttlefish Change Color, Shape-Shift To Elude Predators (National Geographic)
Cuttlefish have been captured on film exhibiting sophisticated camouflage strategies at night, according to scientists who are using new high-resolution cameras to bring these dramatic changes into focus.
2008-08-07 Makeover For Celebrity Squid (Stuff.co.nz)
After a year in a Te Papa freezer and months soaking in chemicals, one of the museum's prized pieces - a 495-kilogram colossal squid - is in need of cosmetic surgery. Also: Colossal Squid Ripped, Stitched, Hoisted and Moved.
2008-08-05 Brine May Impact On Cuttlefish Reproduction (Whyalla News)
University of Adelaide student, Jacqueline Dupavillon, recently researched the effect of brine discharge on cuttlefish eggs as part of her honours thesis. Also: Obligated To Preserve Cuttlefish and Cuttlefish Versus The Mining Industry.
2008-08-04 Third-Largest Cephalopod (Siuslaw News)
A giant squid (Moroteuthis robusta, aka "robust clubhook squid") washed ashore near Yachats, OR last week, on July 29.
2008-08-04 Eight-Legged Threat To Scotland's Lobster Fishermen (Herald.uk)
Craig Burton, of industry body Seafish, added: "Octopuses are canny, wily wee souls who tend to distract the lobster from the front and attack it from the rear."
2008-07-31 Te Papa's Colossal Squid On The Move (Voxy)
Te Papa's colossal squid, Mesonychoteuthis hamilton will be moved from its preservation tank into a purpose built display tank on Wednesday 6 August. The process will be webcast live on Te Papa's website.
2008-07-28 What Do Squid Hear? (7thSpace)
Zoologist T. Aran Mooney will be the first scientist to look at cephalopod hearing, using the squid, Loligo pealeii, as a model.
2008-07-19 Monster Octopi With Scores Of Extra Tentacles (Pink Tentacle)
In nature, it is quite rare to encounter octopi with extra tentacles (or "arms," for the purists), but a pair of aquariums in Japan's Mie prefecture have some extraordinary specimens on hand.
2008-07-16 Scientists To Dissect Giant Squid (ABC.au)
Scientists are hoping to learn more about a giant squid, when it is dissected in Melbourne tomorrow. The 245 kilogram squid was caught by fishermen off the coast of Portland in May. Museum Victoria site with pictures.
2008-07-11 Giant Squid To Arrive At Dover Base (The News Journal)
A Jules Verne-sized addition to the Smithsonian's Institution's newest exhibition hall will whisk through Dover Air Force Base this morning, en route to the national museum's largest addition since 1910. Also: Giant squid lands in Delaware (photo).
2008-07-07 Rubik's Cube Used To Get On Right Side Of Octopuses (Telegraph)
It may be an infuriating puzzle which has baffled and defeated countless children and their parents over more than two decades, but this octopus appears determined to solve the Rubik's Cube. More: Do Octopuses Have A Favourite Tentacle?
2008-07-07 Tourists Sit In On Cuttlefish Orgy (Stuff.co.nz)
Welcome to the fascinating world of the giant Australian cuttlefish. For about three months, every autumn and winter, these amazing creatures gather along a stretch of South Australian coastline for a colourful carnival of reproduction.
2008-07-01 Camouflaged Cuttlefish Attract Crew Of Biologists (Whyalla News)
A research crew of 19 Australian and international roboticists, marine biologists and students converged on Whyalla last week to study the night-time camouflage habits of the giant cuttlefish.
2008-06-26 Rare Giant Squid Found Off Santa Cruz (Santa Cruz Sentinel)
Rough seas on the Monterey Bay on Wednesday coughed up what few, even the most dedicated of marine researchers, have ever seen -- the fabled giant squid.
2008-06-20 How Smart Is The Octopus? (Slate)
Bright enough to do the moving-rock trick. By Carl Zimmer.
2008-06-18 Research On Octopuses Sheds Light On Memory (EurekAlert)
Research on octopuses has shed new light on how our brains store and recall memory, says Dr. Benny Hochner of the Department of Neurobiology at the Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
2008-06-13 Scientists See Squid Attack Squid (Live Science)
"The Humboldt squid is a voracious predator that will eat anything it can get its tentacles on," Benoit-Bird says. "We put a pair of 10-pound squid into a tank and one immediately beheaded the other. These are fierce little beasts."
2008-06-09 Persistent Man-made Chemical Pollutants Found In Deep-sea Octopods And Squids (ScienceDaily)
New evidence that chemical contaminants are finding their way into the deep-sea food web has been found in deep-sea squids and octopods.
2008-06-05 Cuttlefish Spot Target Prey Early (BBC)
Before they have even hatched, cuttlefish embryos can peer out of their eggs and spot potential prey. It is the first time any animal has been shown to learn visual images before they are born.
2008-06-04 From Sea To Squid, Thanks To Slime (Science News)
Goo-making genes help luminescent bacteria colonize its symbiotic partner, the Hawaiian bobtail squid.
2008-06-03 Scientists Probe Giant Squid Sex Secrets (ABC.au)
Victorian scientists are preparing to dissect a giant squid caught off the state's south-west coast last week, hoping to find out more about the enigmatic marine creature. Also: Giant Squid Frozen In Ice Block.
2008-05-26 Fishermen Bag Huge Squid Off Portland (The Age)
Australian fishermen have hauled up a 20-foot (6-meter) long, 500-pound (230-kilogram) giant squid off the country's southeastern coast. Also: more photos & another photo.
2008-05-23 Cuttlefish Could Be Harmed (Whyalla News)
Adelaide University Associate Professor Bronwyn Gillanders, a marine biologist, has said that the proposed port at Point Lowly could harm the cuttlefish population that breeds in that area each year. Also: Plan To Rename Whyalla Coastline Cuttlefish Coast.
2008-05-01 Colossal Squid Has Glowing "Cloaking Device," Huge Eyes (National Geographic)
The giant species has the world's biggest eyes, as well as light-emitting organs that may serve as cloaking devices, scientists say.
2008-04-30 Te Papa's Colossal Squid Blog (Te Papa)
Findings, photos, and video from the disection. The squid was a female. Also: Huge Squid Has World's Largest Eye -- quotes from the scientists.
2008-04-29 Colossal Squid Goes Under Knife (BBC)
Scientists in New Zealand will shortly put their rare intact colossal squid specimen under the dissection knife. Watch it on live video. Also: (Giant Squid May Be "A Minnow".)
2008-04-29 Giant "Diablo" Squid Lurk In B.C. Waters (The Province)
Nightmarish packs of rapacious giant devil squid are hunting off the B.C. coast, their numbers increasing as scientists worry about an attack on fish stocks.
2008-04-27 Jumbo Squid Invade Coast Off Northwest (McClatchy Newspapers)
Jumbo squid lurking off the Pacific Northwest coast could threaten salmon runs and signal another change in the oceans brought on by global warming. (Also: shorter version of article but with more pictures.)
2008-04-27 New Zealand Squid Thaw Put On Ice (BBC)
Technicians in New Zealand have postponed until Monday the delicate process of defrosting a colossal squid caught in Antarctic waters last year. Also: Te Papa museum's live camera feeds of thawing/disection and schedule of events. (From Pharyngula.)
2008-04-17 Global Interest Expected In Defrosting Of "T-Rex" Squid (NZ Herald)
Researchers expect huge scientific interest as they thaw the largest known specimen of the world's biggest invertebrate, a colossal squid, at the Museum of New Zealand on April 30.
2008-03-31 Octopus Sex More Sophisticated Than Arm-Wrestling (UC Berkeley)
For decades, scientists have viewed octopuses as unromantic loners, with mating habits nearly devoid of complex behavior. But new research from the University of California, Berkeley, has found that at least one species of octopus engages in such sophisticated lovemaking tactics as flirting, passionate handholding and keeping rivals at arms' length.
2008-03-27 Scientists Find That Squid Beak Is Both Hard And Soft, A Material That Engineers Want To Copy (PhysOrg)
How did nature make the squid's beak super hard and sharp -- allowing it, without harm to its soft body, to capture its prey? The question has captivated those interested in creating new materials that mimic biological materials. Original paper: "The Transition from Stiff to Compliant Materials in Squid Beaks" (Science)
2008-03-25 Paris' Latest Star Is No Damp Squid (AFP)
France's National Museum of Natural History on Tuesday unveiled the world's first "plastinated" squid -- a 6.5-metre-long (21.25-feet) deep-sea beast donated by New Zealand and named "Wheke" in honour of a creature featuring in Maori legend. More: Giant Preserved Squid On Display (BBC, with better photo)
2008-03-25 Weird Sex: Giant Squid Do It Deeper (CDNN)
Research by marine scientists has shed startling new light on the secret sex life of the giant squid, one of the most mysterious monsters of the world's deepest oceans.
2008-03-12 Jimmie The Octopus Departs With A Splash (The Oregonian)
Early Tuesday in the darkened entrance to the Hatfield Marine Science Center, Jimmie the resident octopus shows no interest in the visitors gathered by her tank...
2008-03-11 Tall Tales: Giant Squid (First Science)
Are the oceans hiding monsters of epic proportions? And will they survive long enough for us to track them down?
2008-03-06 Group Calls For 'Hexapus' Freedom (BBC)
PETA campaigners say Henry the hexapus' new home at a Blackpool exhibition called Suckers is cruel and has turned him into a "sideshow freak". Also: Showtime For Henry: "Octopuses need subdued lighting and flash photography can be fatal".
2008-03-03 Six-legged 'Hexapus' Claimed As World First In Britain (AFP)
British marine experts have found what they claim is a world first -- a six-legged octopus, or "hexapus," whom they have christened Henry. It is believed to be the result of a birth defect. Also: A Hexapus, Not A Six-Legged Octopus.
2008-02-26 The Case Of The Disappearing Octopus (Popular Science)
Roger Hanlon's cephalopod camouflage research hits the mainstream in a popular YouTube video. Using underwater digital video cameras, he and his team are able to capture the intricate physical patterns these animals display across their bodies when they want to go unseen.
2008-02-19 Understanding Octopus, Cuttlefish And Other Camouflage Champions (Herald Tribune)
(By Carl Zimmer) Cuttlefish and their relatives octopus and squid are the world's camouflage champions. But Hanlon and his colleagues have just a rough understanding of how these animals, collectively known as cephalopods, disguise themselves so well.
2008-02-18 Danger Lurks In Rock Pools (Sussex Inlet News)
A local resident has expressed concern over the number of blue ringed octopuses at popular local swimming spots.
2008-02-18 Octopus Exhibit Sucks People In (Seattle Times)
To celebrate the eight-legged invertebrates, the Seattle Aquarium gives them their own week -- Octopus Week.
2008-02-14 Delores The Octopus Is Feeling The Love This Week (Seattle P.I.)
Love has been in the air at the Seattle Aquarium since Thursday, when aquarium staff removed the barrier between giant Pacific octopuses Delores and Tank to see if Delores would allow Tank to be her babies' daddy. See also: Valentine Arrival For Octopus With Three Hearts at Blackpool Sea Life Centre.
2008-02-14 Divers Wanted To Help Count Giant Octopuses In Puget Sound (Tacoma News Tribune)
Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium and the Seattle Aquarium are enlisting local scuba divers this weekend in an effort to count giant Pacific octopuses in the Puget Sound.
2008-02-07 Aquarium Bids Farewell To Octopus (Daily Nexus)
Following a series of failed escape attempts, one of UCSB's resident octopi has made its final escape to the land of no return.
2008-02-04 What Does An Octopus Do When A Predator Threatens It? (HappyNews)
It depends on the octopus.
2008-01-31 Baby Octopus Found In Solent (Daily Echo)
A 20cm long baby octopus has been rescued from the Solent, taken to the Blue Reef Aquarium in Hampshire, and named Osbourne after being accidentally trawled up in the nets of a fishing boat.
2008-01-30 Blue-Ringed Octopus Numbers Increasing (News.com.au)
They are one of the most dangerous animals on earth -- and they're swimming at an Australian beach with you.
2008-01-29 Scientists Study Impact Of Jumbo Squid On Fisheries (Fish Update)
In the last six years, California has seen a major increase in the number of jumbo squid off the coast. Though there are several competing theories as to why this invasion has occurred, scientists say jumbo squid can be considered to be one of the "early winners" of ocean climate change.
2008-01-10 Mr Potato Head Makes Octopus Pal (BBC)
Louis the Giant Pacific Octopus is so attached to the Christmas present that was dropped into his aquarium tank, he fights his keepers whenever they try to take the toy from him. Also a better photo.
2007-12-26 Hatfield Marine Science Center Seeks "Backup" Octopus (News Times)
Aquarists at Oregon's Hatfield Marine Science Center want a smoother new year in terms of obtaining and maintaining the center's foremost creature feature: a giant Pacific octopus.
2007-12-17 Superconducting Cuttlefish (RSC)
UK chemists have used cuttlefish bones to template the growth of new superconductors.
2007-12-07 Squid Pro Quo (Globe Gazette)
Ellie Lehmann said she and fellow fifth-graders couldn't wait to dissect squid.
2007-12-03 Port Development Could Scuttle Giant Cuttlefish (The Australian)
A vulnerable and genetically distinct population of giant cuttlefish stands in the way of the mining industry's bid for a deep-sea port in South Australia's Spencer Gulf.
2007-11-12 Octopus Inspire New Camouflage Strategies For Military (ScienceDaily)
Researchers are studying the remarkable shape- and color-changing abilities of the octopus and its close relatives in an effort to understand one of nature's most remarkable feats of camouflage and self-preservation.
2007-11-11 Student Research Project Features Octopus In Training (Greenwich Time)
Ophelia the octopus hunkered down in the corner of a saltwater tank in a Brunswick upper school classroom. The octopus, a research project of Brunswick junior Connor Fitzpatrick, was hiding a secret that was revealed when Ophelia moved away from the tank wall.
2007-11-08 Omar The Octopus Ships Out (Bellingham Herald)
Chance for romance lies in Seattle. Omar the octopus is headed for the big time, with some gentle encouragement from one of his caretakers at the Marine Life Center in Bellingham.
2007-10-31 Coin Critters: Argentinian Squid Has Its Own Following (Numismaster)
Falkland Islands has honored the Argentine shortfin squid (Illex argentinus) (and commemorated the 1987 Fisheries Conservation Zone) by issuing a one crown coin (KM 147) with its image. Column has picture and squid factoids.
2007-10-28 Nine-Armed Octopus Found (Asahi, in Japanese)
English translation: A spokesperson for the Akashi Seafood Council in nearby Hyogo prefecture confirmed the unusual nature of the extra-tentacled creature: "In Akashi, we might see one every 20 years or so. They are extremely rare."
2007-10-23 All Dressed Up And Somewhere To Go (The Telegram)
The giant squid that once lived in an obscure room at the Newfoundland Provincial Museum on Duckworth Street has been cleaned up, put in a new tank and moved to a new home where she will be proudly displayed.
2007-10-23 Seminar On Climate Change Challenges For Chilean Fisheries (The Telegram)
The abundance of cuttlefish along the Chilean coast is one of the possible consequences of global climate change mentioned in a recent scientific gathering held Santiago. Also: Cuttlefish eluding India's west coast fishermen for over a month.
2007-10-03 Chile: Giant Predatory Humboldt Squid Threatens Hake (MercoPress)
An invasion of predatory Humboldt squid into northern Pacific waters is decimating hake catches in the Pacific Ocean, including along Chile's coast. This is the conclusion of an extensive study carried out over 19 years by the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute.
2007-08-23 Octopus Vs. Mr. Potato Head (ABC)
Mr. Potato Head is a favorite enrichment tool for the South Carolina Aquarium's octopus. Includes video. Also: Lurking at the Aquarium, Brilliant Houdinis of the Deep (with photo)
2007-08-23 Giant Squid Caught Off Italian Coast (UPI)
The first giant squid ever captured intact in Italian waters.
2007-08-23 Giant, Baby Squid Could Set World Record (NBC)
A rare squid could end up in the record books. Scientists at Mote Marine Laboratory in Sarasota, Florida are studying the body of a juvenile giant squid found floating off the Florida Keys. Also: Fisherman Finds Rare Baby Giant Squid.
2007-08-23 Giant Squid To Be Preserved (ABC.au)
The giant squid washed-up in Tasmania last month was removed from the freezer to start the preserving process.
2007-07-31 'Male' Octopus Suffers Baby Blues (BBC)
A "male" octopus who had been suffering from a mystery illness has turned out to be a mother-to-be with morning sickness.
2007-07-30 Cephalopod Development And Evolution (Pharyngula)
How could oysters be related to squid; one's a flat, sessile blob with a hard shell, and the other is a jet-propelled active predator with eyes and tentacles. A recent paper traces the development of Nautilus and works out how the body plan is established.
2007-07-28 California Squid Invasion Threatening "Fish Stick" Species (National Geographic)
The invasion of Humboldt squid seems to be making a noticeable dent in the local population of hake, experts note in a new study.
2007-07-24 Octopus Unearths 900-Year-Old Hidden Treasure (Daily Mail)
It is a story that combines all the great mysteries and exciting discoveries of the sea - an octopus hauled onto a fishing boat with valuable ancient pottery attached to its suckers. (An update with new photos to original Korean report from June.)
2007-07-23 California's Attack Of The Jumbo Squid (New Scientist)
Ferocious, pack-feeding jumbo squid have invaded waters off California's central coast and are devouring local fish populations. Researchers say global warming and overfishing are likely to blame. Also: Giant Squid With 40,000 Sharp Teeth Take Up Residence In Monterey Bay (Mercury News)
2007-07-12 Giant Squid Found On Farewell Spit (TV3, NZ)
The animal was about 4.2m long and washed up at the high tide mark approx 6 km along the ocean side of the Spit.
2007-07-12 "Octosquid" Identified As A Plain Squid (Star Bulletin, HI)
"It's a typical squid [of the genus Mastigoteuthis], and its tentacles were probably torn off (while coming up the pipeline)," said Richard Young.
2007-07-11 Rare Giant Squid Washed Up In Australia (Reuters)
One of the largest giant squid ever found has washed up on a remote Australian beach, sparking a race against time by scientists to examine the rarely seen deep-ocean creature. Also: Love's cruel embrace, or dying for dinner: a giant's lonely end
2007-07-05 Curious Creature Caught Off Keahole Point (Star Bulletin, HI)
What appears to be a half-squid, half-octopus specimen found off Keahole Point on the Big Island remains unidentified today and could possibly be a new species, said local biologists.
2007-06-26 Fishing For Octopus On Indian Ocean Isle (Reuters)
"The octopus is beautiful," the 34-year-old mother-of-four says. "But it is our food, so we have to kill it."
2007-06-20 Octopuses Prefer Lego (ITN)
A giant octopus has found a new way of passing the time at an aquarium in the UK - with his lego. Text and video.
2007-06-16 They're Baaaack... (AdelaideNow)
Thousands of blue-blooded, eight-armed Giant cuttlefish filled with lust are closing in on Whyalla in one of nature's strangest phenomena. Text and video.
2007-06-06 Cephalopod Camouflage, Or: Turning Invisible Is Easier Than It Looks (Pharyngula)
This is an amazing ability, and the question is how do they do it? One of the minor surprises found by Roger Hanlon is that the algorithm for generating camouflage may not be that complex.
2007-06-06 Exhibit Sheds Light On Giant Squid (Gazette-Times)
Mysterious creature will be an Oregon Coast Aquarium showcase until Labor Day.
2007-06-06 Giant Cuttlefish Attracts World Interest (Whyalla News)
The famous giant cuttlefish season has begun with the fascinating creatures arriving in the region's shallows to spawn.
2007-06-05 Octopus Discovers Koryo Pottery (Chosun)
... When Kim Yong-chul pulled in the shell bait, he found some pottery pieces stuck to the suckers of webfoot octopus. One animal was attached to a plate dating to the Koryo period.
2007-05-26 Giant Squid Return To Southern California Waters (KABC)
"I have nearly a thousand dives with these animals and I have been either tested or full out attacked about 80 percent of the time," Scott Cassell said.
2007-05-25 Scripps To The Rescue (Voice of Sandiego)
Editor discovers corpse of squid, photo shown, assigns reporter to identify it, who asks Scripps Institution of Oceanography: "It's a Humboldt." (This executive summery only slightly shorter than actual article.)
2007-05-23 Octopus Reuben Slips Into The Water Near Newport For A New Life (The Register-Guard)
A giant octopus escaped his holding tank at the Hatfield Marine Science Center on Tuesday and may at this very moment be terrorizing victims throughout Yaquina Bay.
2007-05-07 Mote Shows Off Rare Squid (Herald Tribune)
A large deep-sea squid has made a rare appearance Wednesday, her fourth since a charter fisherman found her floating in 820-foot-deep water off the southern coast of Key West.
2007-05-07 Baby Octopi Hatch At Mall Aquarium (KTVA)
It's an unheard of event for one retail aquarium store.
2007-04-10 The Octopus That Can Open Drink Bottles (Hawke's Bay Today)
Octi has come a long way since being pulled out of a rockpool - she can now open bottles, using her tentacles. More: Napier octopus displays sleight of tentacle - "She's quite happy to be here because she can actually take the lid off her tank and climb out if she wants. She pushed the lid away but she never actually climbed out and escaped."
2007-04-03 Firefly Squid Spark Battle For Tourists (Asahi)
During spawning season, Firefly squid emit a lovely blue light that is visible at night. Around Toyama Bay, Japan, cities are keen to bolster a tourist trade featuring the tiny squid.
2007-03-30 Cuttlefish: Stars Of Study, TV Show (American-Statesman)
Jesse Purdy has been conducting basic conditioning experiments on cuttlefish since 1992. His research, which could reveal information about human intellectual capacities, will be featured in "Kings of Camouflage" on PBS. More: PBS Taps MU Prof For "NOVA"
2007-03-30 Jumbo Squid Invading Eastern Pacific (National Geographic)
Flotillas of jumbo (Humboldt) squid are invading the length of the eastern Pacific Ocean, and the voracious predators may be upsetting ocean ecosystems and threatening fisheries, scientists warn.
2007-03-26 Warning Lights Of The Sea (LA Times)
Humboldt squid is a colossal cephalopod that reaches 7 feet long, can weigh more than 100 pounds, and jets through the water at speeds up to 25 mph and it's numbers are increasing off of California. Divers attacked.
2007-03-22 Colossal Squid May Be Headed For The Oven In New Zealand (Canada.com)
In order to avoid partial rotting, industrial microwave equipment is being considered for thawing the frozen Colossal squid.
2007-03-16 Cuttlefish Babies Return To Sarasota (WTSP)
Eight cuttlefish babies born at Mote Marine Labs have returned home to grow up.
2007-03-16 Night Vision Helps With Camouflage In Briny Deep (LiveScience)
Cuttlefish can instantaneously camouflage themselves against any background -- even in the dark of night, proving that they must have extremely fine-tuned night vision, according to a new study.
2007-03-09 Stealth Camouflage At Night (EurekAlert)
Marine Biological Laboratory study confirms cephalopods use rapid adaptive camouflage at night.
2007-03-08 Tracking Sperm Whales And Jumbo Squid (EurekAlert)
Scientists conduct first simultaneous tagging study of a deep-sea predator and its prey.
2007-03-08 Professor And Student Study Mood Changes In Octopuses (The Snapper)
White rods are used to show when an octopus is optimistic and black rods are used to show when they are pessimistic.
2007-03-07 Monster of the Deep (Newsweek)
How the world's largest squid was caught -- and the bidding war for the exclusive footage slated to be shown this spring.
2007-03-06 Giant Squid Discovery Brings Back Memories Of Plum Island's "Squidly" (Gloucester Daily Times)
In 1980, Dan Laughlin, an assistant curator at Boston's New England Aquarium, was called in to work on a giant squid carcass that had washed up on Plum Island.
2007-03-03 School Of Giant Squids Found In Local Waters (OCRegister)
Eighteen anglers on a Newport Landing Sportfishing boat came back early this morning with a boat full of Humboldt squid, averaging about 30 pounds each and 5 feet in length.
2007-02-25 Scientists Trying To Identify Large Squid (News-Press)
"Scientists are trying to figure out the identity of a large squid [13ft., not intact] found off the Florida Keys by a charter captain last week." UPDATE: identified as an Asperoteuthis acanthoderma, see squid necropsy photos. UPDATE: (2007-03-17) It's a female
2007-02-22 Big Squid Hooked (The Age)
New Zealand fishermen in the Ross Sea have caught what's thought to be the largest squid [colossal squid (Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni)] ever found anywhere in the world, weighing an estimated 450kg. UPDATE: For additional links and updates, see special CephNews report...
2007-02-17 Video: Octopus Mating A Tangled Affair (National Geographic)
For a male cyanea octopus, finding a mate is all about showing a little "leg."
2007-02-17 If You're A Sucker For Octopuses, This Is Your Week (Seattle PI)
On Wednesday, the Seattle Aquarium removed the tank barrier between giant Pacific octopuses Ivan and Juliet and let the two get to know each other, if you know what I mean.
2007-02-14 Large Squid Lights Up For Attack (BBC)
Big deep-sea squid emit blinding flashes of light as they attack their prey, research shows. Includes video. More: National Geographic article.
2007-02-13 Using Octopuses To Understand Depression (PR Newswire)
Dr. Jean Boal, a biology professor at Millersville University of Pennsylvania, is developing a new and unique way to research the causes and effects of depression with the help of octopuses.
2007-01-19 Messy Mollusks Definitely Keep It Interesting (LA Times)
They're a welcome change of pace, all slithery and grabby, squirting water and ink, providing boatloads of fun as well as delectable table fare. But then there's the aftermath.
2007-01-09 Giant Squid Hitches Free Ride To The Marquesas (Cruising World)
An episode of underbody sabotage attributed to one of the most mysterious creatures of the deep, the giant squid.
2007-01-05 A Near-Deadly Encounter Sparks Blue-Ringed Octopus Warning (Country Times)
A chance encounter which could have been lethal. Includes blue-ringed octopus facts and what to do if bitten.
2006-12-22 Researchers Catch Giant Squid (AP)
A Japanese research team has succeeded in filming a giant squid live -- possibly for the first time -- and says the elusive creatures may be more plentiful than previously believed. VIDEO Also: Giant Squid, Where Are You?
2006-12-15 Photographer To Seek Elusive Giant Squid (NZ Herald)
Marine biologist Peter Batson says he plans to try photographing giant squid at a depth of 3000m off the coast of New Zealand.
2006-12-13 Squid-inspired Vortex Generators Created (UC@B)
Inspired by the sleek and efficient propulsion of squid, a researcher has designed a new generation of compact vortex generators that could make it easier for scientists to maneuver and dock underwater vehicles at low speeds and with greater precision.
2006-12-09 Octopus Skin Yields Bright Discovery (Nature)
The molecules that make octopus skin so successful as a dynamic camouflage could provide materials scientists with a new way to make super-reflective materials.
2006-12-08 Winning Shot Of A Shape-Shifter (SMH)
Meet "the great mimic", a creature so cunning it was finally identified and named only eight years ago: the elusive Indo-Malayan Mimic Octopus.
2006-11-30 Diamondback Squids In Jamaica - A New Fisheries Resource? (Jamaica Gleaner)
A few years ago, if someone had said that there were Diamondback squids in Jamaican waters, it would have been greeted with polite laughter. Today, however, there is clear evidence to suggest that the species is indeed here.
2006-11-17 Aquarium Will Soon Have Thousands of Babies (Beach Connection)
At the Seaside Aquarium a female Rubescense octopus may have laid her eggs a few weeks ago, but she'll soon be mother to as many as 3,000 babies at any time now. Also: slideshow.
2006-11-05 Octopus: Genius Of The Deep (The Independent)
They can use tools and experience pain and stress. Octopuses are so intelligent they may win special protection in laboratory research - and from the cruelty dished out by some restaurant kitchens.
2006-11-04 Paprika The Octopus Makes A Big Splash In Kindergarten (Brock Island Times)
In taking up residency in the Block Island School kindergarten classroom, Paprika the octopus has made quite an impression on her classmates, even as she has made herself very much at home.
2006-11-03 Giant Squid Latches Onto Golding (Yachting World)
Golding, the leading Brit in the yacht race, was in a good mood despite an incident with a giant squid, which has covered his hull and the lower part of his sails in ink.
2006-10-29 What In The world? (AAP)
A mysterious gelatinous ball was spotted in Hordaland, western Norway. It was a large squid egg sack.
2006-10-09 Boy Survives Octopus Bite (AAP)
A toddler who was bitten by a deadly blue ringed octopus after he picked it up and played with it has lived to tell the tale.
2006-09-23 Squid Star Of Freaky Fish Show (NZ Herald)
With eyes the size of grapefruit and a 5m tentacle curling around the tank, Squid Vicious looks like a prop from an underwater horror movie.
2006-09-22 Squid Skin Reveals Hidden Messages (MBL)
MBL scientists find anatomical evidence for a hidden communication channel that remains masked during camouflage. Also: Study: Squid Are Masters Of Disguise
2006-09-22 Squirt The Octopus Cracks Underwater Puzzles (Bluereef)
A giant Pacific octopus called Squirt is on the verge of solving an ingenious set of underwater puzzles at the Blue Reef Aquarium in Newquay.
2006-09-05 Octopus Surprises Scientists (ITV)
A giant Pacific octopus has shown himself to be quite the brainbox after he opened a complex perspex safe to get at the food inside. Also: Oct Of Intelligence
2006-08-23 Newquay Aquarium Welcomes Baby Cuttlefish (The Pasty)
A dozen baby cuttlefish have been born at Newquay's Blue Reef Aquarium.
2006-08-16 Fishermen Snag Giant Squid Tentacle (AP)
A tentacle and two arms of a giant squid about 20 feet long were snagged by a sport fisherman off Santa Cruz Island.
2006-08-16 Lurking At The Aquarium, Brilliant Houdinis Of The Deep (Washington Post)
A leading indicator of octopus intelligence is that they get bored.
2006-08-14 Spineless Tales Provide Strong Backbone To Human Brain Research (press release)
Two specific brain chemicals, residing in a specific location, allow a cuttlefish to change skin color or skin patterns in less than a second.
2006-08-13 Cuttle Cuddles (News.com.au)
Giant cuttlefish of Whyalla: Macho posers, drag queens, dancers, bizarre light shows -- welcome to one of nature's strangest mating games.
2006-08-08 A Rare Catch: Octopus Pulled From Ohio River (Courier-Journal)
David Stepp was fishing for catfish with friends on the Ohio River Monday night when he reeled in a bizarre catch -- an octopus. 08-10 UPDATE: Mystery Solved
2006-08-08 Ravenous Octopus Is Master Of The Marina (Hartlepool Today)
A rapidly growing octopus has become the latest attraction in a marina. Also: Hunting For Octopus, reporter goes in search of the Hartlepool Marina Monster.
2006-07-21 Pollock Fishermen Pull Up Slew Of Squid (AP)
They're pink, slippery and decidedly not cute, especially if you are a pollock fisherman in the Bering Sea pulling up a slew of unusable squid this summer.
2006-07-21 Octopuses Evolved As Antarctica Froze (ABC.au)
Colder Antarctic waters drove the evolution of deep sea octopuses, suggests new research.
2006-07-01 Behold The Humboldt (Outside)
What swims at 20 miles per hour, can carve out hunks of human flesh, and will attack anything that moves? The Humboldt squid. Brace yourself for a dive with the eeriest beast in the ocean.
2006-06-22 Deep-Sea Dates Do The Business Off Whyalla (ABC.au)
It's a giant orgy. The waters of the Spencer Gulf are simply reeking with sex at the moment, as millions of Giant Australian cuttlefish arrive for their annual breeding season.
2006-06-16 Cuttlefish Swarm To Safety Zone (Whyalla News)
The future of Whyalla's cuttlefish tourism is looking bright, with large numbers of the breed returning to the grounds this year.
2006-04-20 Cuttlefish Masters Of Disguise Despite Colorblindness (MBL)
Cuttlefish are wizards of camouflage. Adept at blending in with their surroundings, cuttlefish are known to have a diverse range of body patterns and can switch between them almost instantaneously (photo and video).
2006-04-18 Shy Squids Have Shy Kids (ABC.au)
Squid have personalities that appear to be passed down from parent to offspring, says an Australian researcher.
2006-04-17 How The Octopus Forms An Elbow (Current Biology PR)
Human-like movement control helps flexible arms achieve precision. Also: Octopuses Have Trick Elbows.
2006-04-14 Tourists Bask In Blue Glow Of Firefly Squid (Pink Tentacle)
Toyama Bay is the habitat of the world-famous glowing firefly squid, which surface in large numbers every spring in a phenomenon that has been designated a special natural monument. More: Original article (Japanese), Hotaruika Museum (Japanese)
2006-04-11 Biology Club Students Are Suckers For New Octopus (Northern Light)
After a year of research and planning, the UAA Biology Club plopped its new octopus -- named Tako -- into a tank.
2006-03-28 Squid Native To Mexico Found Off Washington Coast (Seattle PI)
Humboldt squid found in Washington.
2006-02-28 Giant Squid Grabs London Audience (BBC)
One of the biggest and most complete giant squids ever found is on display at London's Natural History Museum. Also: Giant Squid Goes On Display (Natural History Museum)
2006-02-28 Life's A Squid, And Then You Die (Monterey Herald)
From beginning to end, this fish's existence is perilous -- and short. Also: Getting A Handle On The Number Of Squids' Kids.
2006-02-27 Giant "Squid" In Chile Scares Vacationers (Merco Press)
The emergence of a 1.7 meters long [Humboldt squid] in a Puerto Montt beach, south of Chile caused panic Sunday among vacationers. In Spanish: Miedo Generó Hallazgo de Calamar Gigante en Chinquihue
2006-02-23 Mating Trick (ScienCentral)
The male Australian cuttlefish sometimes disguises itself as a female in order to get a girl (video). Also: Sensitivity, charm and cleverness: very sexy (Pharyngula)
2006-02-11 Thousands Of Humboldt Squid Wash Up On Chilean Beach (Merco Press)
Authorities began removing hundreds of tons of squid that washed up on a beach in southern Chile and were in a process of decomposing.
2006-02-10 Romance Is In The Water For Octopus Week (Daily Herald)
The Seattle Aquarium will kick off the event early with a blind date for two of the animals.
2006-02-07 New Sonar Method Offers Way To Assess Health Of Squid Fisheries (WHOI Press Release)
Scientists devise technique to detect squid egg clusters on the seafloor.
2006-02-07 Squids May Help Determine Global Warming Impact (ABC.au)
They may be the least understood animals of the ocean but cephalopods may hold the key to learning the long-term impacts of over-fishing and global warming.
2006-02-04 Adventure Travel: Giant Squid Diving (Press Release)
Welcome to the wild world of the Giant Squid (Dosidicus gigas) or as it's commonly known in Mexico, the Red Demon Squid.
2006-02-03 Iridoteuthis iris (Pharyngula)
This big-eyed Hawaiian squid is only 3cm long. It's a sepiolid, or one of the bobtail squids.
2006-01-19 Octopus Tried To Eat Sub (Daily Record)
The 18-foot sea monster wrapped its tentacles around the remote-controlled sub's cable and hauled itself towards it. Also: Report (with video) from sub maker Seaeye. More: Octopus believed to be "senile".
2006-01-13 Firefly Squid (Pharyngula)
This is a beautiful little animal with a brief and brilliant life.
2006-01-07 Gut Contents Of A Giant Squid (TONMO)
A look at what Architeuthis dux eats.
2005-12-20 Giant Squid Expected To Set Pulses Racing (ABC.au)
The Melbourne Aquarium has added a new and unusual attraction to its collection of sea creatures: a giant squid encased in a block of ice. Others with photos: Eye-to-eye with a giant squid, New squid on the (ice) block
2005-12-17 Nature: Encountering Sea Monsters (PBS)
PBS show follows Bob Cranston in his quest to film and understand the world's most mysterious cephalopods. Site has articles, video, photos.
2005-12-15 Tentacle sex, part deux (Pharyngula)
Mating mechanics of squid, with diagrams.
2005-12-15 Bright Pink And Flapping Like Dumbo (Globe & Mail)
In the icy Arctic Ocean, scientists discover the world's northernmost known octopus: the Canadian Arctic octopus.
2005-12-15 Dancing With Demons (Deeper Blue)
Account of diving off Baja California with Humboldt squid (Dosidicus gigas), a.k.a. Diablo Rojo (Red Devil).
2005-12-14 Broody Squid Keep Young In Hand (Nature)
Gonatus onyx is the first squid ever discovered carrying its huge brood around under its arms. See also from: New Scientist (videos), NewsWise, LiveScience
2005-12-12 Archeologist In Training (24 hours)
6-year-old student Brianna finds a 73-million-year-old fossilized squid.
2005-12-08 Monster Squid Gets Second Chance At Life After Big Catch (Statesman Journal)
OSU student reels in a 30- to 50-pound cephalopod.
2005-11-24 Age No Barrier For Octopus Researchers (ABC.au)
Scientists in Tasmania have announced that they have made a ground-breaking discovery by finding a way to determine the age of octopuses: count the number of rings in a shell structure within the octopus known as a stylet.
2005-11-23 Squid Nuptial Dances (Pharyngula)
It's discovered that South African squid lek, a mating behavior seen in some birds where the males gather and display for female attention.
2005-11-23 Defeated By The Squid (Pharyngula)
"Mathy" paper on jet flow in swimming squid leaves developmental biologist uncomprehending. Other cephalophiles are befuddled too. Pictures are pretty though.
2005-11-07 Squid Are Researcher's "Favorite Guys" (Boston.com)
About Joe DeGiorgis and his work on the Squid Genome Project.
2005-10-21 MBL Scientists Get On Squid's Nerves (MBL)
Scientists at the Marine Biology Lab (MBL) have recently launched the Squid Genome Project, a scientific collaboration to identify the genes of the long-finned squid.
2005-10-10 Love Is A Battlefield For The Giant Squid (Philly.com)
You don't want to mess with a giant squid, even if you yourself are a giant squid. Their embraces end with brutality, maiming and sometimes death. And yet, in the darkest depths of the ocean, some irresistible force draws them together to procreate.
2005-09-27 Holy Squid! Photos Offer First Glimpse of Live Deep-Sea Giant (National Geographic)
A set of extraordinary images captured by Japanese scientists marks the first-ever record of a live giant squid (Architeuthis) in the wild. Also: Giant Squid, Where Are You? - NY Times - The original paper in Proceedings... (600+Kio PDF)
2005-09-25 Giant Squid Do It Deeper (CDNN)
Research by marine scientists has shed startling new light on the secret sex life of the giant squid, one of the most mysterious monsters of the world's deepest oceans.
2005-09-23 Cephalopod Gnashers (Pharyngula)
Cephalopods can inflict a nasty bite. On their underside, at the conjunction of their arms, they have a structure called the beak which does look rather like a bird's beak, and which can close with enough force to crush shellfish.
2005-09-23 Killers From The Deep Invade B.C. Waters (Campbell River Mirror)
Hundreds of dead man-sized Humboldt squid normally found in the the tropics have been washing up on the beaches from Port Hardy to the Queen Charlotte Islands, to Alaska.
2005-09-02 Captured On Film: Octopus-Egg Hatching And Young Octopuses Foraging (ASLC)
Perseverance paid off for Alaska SeaLife Center's videographers. After months of monitoring, the Alaska SeaLife Center has captured footage of its tiny octopus eggs hatching and feeding.
2005-09-02 A Vulcanoctopus Garden (Pharyngula)
This pallid octopod is Vulcanoctopus hydrothermalis, a deep-sea species found lurking about hydrothermal vents, where they clamber about among the tube worms, tolerating poisonous clouds of warm sulfides.
2005-08-24 Misrepresentation Of Octopus's Nature (JoongAng Daily)
An editorial from a Korean octopus: "Because of my ink, you have called me, octopus, by the graceful name of 'writing fish.' However, my image is still nothing but wicked."
2005-08-07 Kodos, Kang, & Cephalopod Evolution (UTI blog)
What has tentacles, can change color, has large eyes, greenish-blue blood, three hearts, glows in the dark, and no spine -- and is not a Quantum Presbyterian from Rigel IV?
2005-07-27 Gruesome Habits Of The Giant Squid (New Scientist)
Enshrined in myth as ferocious beasts that overturn boats to munch on sailors, giant squid, it appears, also indulge in cannibalism. (subscription) Also: Giant Squid May Be Cannibals (full article)
2005-07-21 Scottish Fishermen Are 'Squids' In (Grampian TV)
Fishermen are cashing in on a new species which has sprung up unexpectedly off the north east coast.
2005-07-19 Octopus Learns To Open Lids (IBS)
The 1-year-old resident of Denmark's Aquarium is a jar-opening expert, sometimes popping off tight lids in less than 10 seconds.
2005-07-14 Cuttlefish Carnage (Dive Magazine)
The annual courtship of cuttlefish at Babbacombe Bay in Devon is one of the most amazing spectacles in British waters... But for how long?
2005-07-02 Gibraltar Biologists Identify 'Monster' Squid (Merco Press)
This family [Histioteuthidae] can be identified by the presence of large photophores on the head, hood and legs. Another interesting characteristic is that the left eye is considerably larger than the right.
2005-06-20 Here's Looking At You (Photo) (Live Science)
Every year Cape Cod gets bombarded with tourists. But it's not just people who flock to the Cape -- tens of thousands of Woods Hole squid vacation here too.
2005-06-09 Cuttlefish Decline Halted (Whyalla News)
According to anecdotal evidence, the number of cuttlefish moving into the breeding grounds has levelled off, rather than declining for the fourth year in a row.
2005-06-07 'Walking' Octopus Inspires Soft Robots (BBC)
The surprise discovery that octopi can "walk" along the sea bed on two tentacles has inspired scientists seeking to create of a new generation of soft, flexible robots.
2005-05-05 Eight Arms To Hold You (Ancorage Press)
How a giant octopus touched a human chord.
2005-05-02 Scientists Watch For Calamari That Bites Back (Globe and Mail)
For the first time in recorded history, a Humboldt squid had been captured for study from the temperate waters of the northeastern Pacific.
2005-04-13 Octopus Eggs Begin To Hatch, Octo-mom Aurora Holds On For Arrival Of Young (Alaska SeaLife Center)
Commitment sometimes appears with an eight-armed morphology. Includes video of octo-babies. (Link is to Center's updates page.)
2005-03-25 Blanket Octopus: The World's Most Sexually Size-Dimorphic Large Animal (Royal Society of NZ)
Female blanket octopuses, Tremoctopus violaceus, attain sizes of up to 2 m long-almost 2 orders of magnitude larger than the 2.4-cm-long male (PDF). Also: An overview from Pharyngula.
2005-03-24 Two-Limbed Tiptoe Aids Octopus Camouflage (Nature)
Two tiny species of tropical octopus have demonstrated a remarkable disappearing trick. They adopt a two-armed "walk" that frees up their remaining six limbs to camouflage them as they slink away from trouble.
2005-03-18 Dead Jumbo Squid Wash Up On O.C. Beaches (Oakland Tribune)
Dead jumbo squid are again washing up along Orange County's coastline, baffling scientists who have been trying to find out why. Also: Massive Squid Dropped Off At Redondo Fish Market.
2005-02-24 Jumbo Squid Vanish In A Cloud Of Ink (Oakland Tribune)
The Jumbo Humboldt squid which had delighted anglers from Bodega Bay to Monterey since January and washing ashore as far north as Alaska, have left our waters as quickly as they showed up.
2005-02-23 Jumbo Squid Mass "Suicide" Stumps California Scientists (Nat. Geo.)
It's a deep-sea mystery worthy of a Jules Verne novel.
2005-02-17 Octopus Week At Seattle Aquarium (Seattle Times)
Census adds up to picture of health. Whatever challenges that U.S. Census workers face, it is unlikely they have ever been required to engage in underwater tug-of-war.
2005-02-09 Octopus Arms May Point Way to New Robot Designs (Nat. Geo.)
Octopuses, those boneless, brainy, denizens of the deep, use their arms for some tasks in much the same way humans do, according to a new study.
2005-02-09 More Details Of Cephalopod Dinner Etiquette (Pharyngula)
What to do with your prey once it is snared by your suckered limbs.
2005-01-27 Squid Attack! (Pharyngula)
"If anyone is interested in writing a Lovecraftian horror novel and getting all the details just right, I recommend this paper by Kier and Leeuwen. They used a high-speed camera to capture exactly how a squid, Loligo pealei, strikes and seizes its prey."
2005-01-20 Invasion of the Jumbo Squid (LA Times)
About 1,500 of the natives of South America washed onto Orange County, CA, beaches over the last few days, leaving experts puzzled. Also: Jumbo squid wash up on Southern California beaches (AP)
2005-01-20 Cuttlefish Win Mates With Transvestite Antics (Nature)
Male cuttlefish disguise themselves as females so they can get close to potential mates being guarded by rival males. Also: Cross-dressing cuttlefish (ABC.au), Dishonesty the Best Policy, Cuttlefish Study Concludes (SciAm), The Independent
2005-01-19 Researchers Track Squid Movements (ABC.au)
Marine researchers have reported new discoveries about squid behaviour in waters off Tasmania's east coast.
2004-12-20 Squids Owe Glow To Whooping Cough Molecule (W.U. St. Louis)
A molecule that triggers damaging changes in the lungs of children with whooping cough lets a bobtail squid living off the coast of Hawaii acquire the ability to glow, scientists have discovered.
2004-12-18 Octopus Cannon Hits McDonalds (News24)
Armed with a high-pressure hose and a bucket of octopi, hundreds of protestors in this Mediterranean town on Saturday pelted a McDonalds restaurant due to open this week with the slimy seafood.
2004-12-14 Eight-Armed Eggheads (NY Times)
The intelligence of an invertebrate is hard to measure in human terms, but there is a wide consensus among scientists that the octopus, with its large and complex nervous system, is the smartest of the invertebrates.
2004-12-07 Octopus Doesn't Give Up On Motherhood (AP)
It was a May-December romance that really had legs: Young Aurora, a female giant octopus and her aging cephalopod suitor J-1 were thrown together for a blind date seven months ago by aquarists who hoped the two would mate.
2004-12-04 Giant Squid To Be "Plastinated" For Posterity (New Scientist)
With a lack of internal skeleton, giant squid have always been too floppy to display. But now for the first time, two giant squid specimens are being prepared to go on display. And the preparation is being done by Gunther von Hagens, who will use his controversial "plastination" technique -- which he has already used to display human bodies. Also: Boffins Turning Giant Squid Into Plastic Displays
2004-11-29 Indo-Malayan Mimic Octopus (Pharyngula)
Series of photos and movies of an Indonesian mimic octopus mimicing things.
2004-11-22 (PHOTO) Unknown Octopod (AP)
This photo released by the Census of Marine Life shows an unknown octopod from the Southern Ocean near Antarctica, possibly of the genus Pareledone.
2004-11-15 Could Warming Lead to Squid Boom? (ABC News)
As evidence mounts of possible global warming and overfishing, there may be a flip side to the dire news: an abundance of calamari.
2004-11-11 In a Tiny Squid, Bacterial Toxin Governs Organ Development (University of Wisconsin)
In a tiny Pacific Ocean squid, a toxic molecule that causes whooping cough and gonorrhea in humans has been found to be a critical catalyst for organ development. High-res photo of Hawaiian bobtail squid.
2004-10-27 How Do Octopus Suckers Work? (Pharyngula)
"Whoa, it's been a while since I've said anything about my infatuation with cephalopods. Let's correct that with a nifty paper I found on octopus suckers."
2004-10-18 Hundreds Of Squid Wash Onto Beaches (Longview Daily News)
Hundreds of dead squid littered the shores of the Long Beach Peninsula, WA, on Sunday. Also: Jumbo Squid Wash Up On Long Beach Peninsula, Jumbo Squid Hit The Beach, El Nino Probably Carried Squid North
2004-10-17 Humboldt Squid Make Rare Appearance Here (Seattle Times)
A rarely seen school of jumbo-sized squid has been lurking off the Pacific Northwest coast (photo). More with photos: Squid Catch Stuns Scientists
2004-10-07 Angler Snags First Jumbo Flying Squid Found In British Columbia (Seattle P.I.)
What Gudy Gudmundseth wanted was salmon. What he got has made scientific history, the first Humboldt squid to be recovered from British Columbia waters. Also: Giant Squid Warm To Waters Of B.C. (CBC) ... Jumbo Flying Squid Found Off Alaska (AP)
2004-10-07 World Records And Endangered Squid (Scoop.co.nz)
An attempt to break the world record for keeping squid alive will highlight the plight of the endangered animals to thousands across the world, says world-renowned squid expert, Dr Steve O'Shea. Live SquidCam
2004-09-24 Giant Squid: Monsters Of The Sea (News-Times)
Peabody exhibit captures most elusive of sea creatures.
2004-09-24 Giant Squid Can Leave Fishermen Feeling Wet (Daily Breeze)
Rain coats a good idea for night hauls because feisty mollusk sprays everyone when it's caught.
2004-09-24 Oil Firms' Air Guns Killing Giant Squid (Telegraph)
Giant squid have been washed up dead in unusual numbers in the Bay of Biscay as a result of acoustic surveys by oil companies.
2004-09-22 Seismic Surveys May Kill Giant Squid (New Scientist)
One of the oceans' most mysterious animals, the giant squid, may be being killed by human noises.
2004-09-16 UA's Yellow Sub To Track Elusive Pacific Octopus (Tucson Citizen)
Little is known about the giant Pacific octopus, a species that lurks in the world's cold seas. Also see: Students Build Submarine to Track Octopuses (Newswise)
2004-09-15 Why Octopuses Hit The Bottle (AU Herald Sun)
A beer bottle is not everyone's idea of a safe home for their babies. But for octopus mums at the bottom of Port Phillip Bay it is an ideal home. (Includes photo of mother and babies.)
2004-09-04 Squidman Set To Bring Up Baby (NZ Herald)
Squidman (Steve O'Shea) is looking forward to becoming a father, although he is well aware the 4000 baby squid he is hoping to rear into adults are just as likely to bite his hand off as look at him with thanks or even a hint of recognition.
2004-09-02 Coupled Squid Cells (Pharyngula)
Cephalopods are remarkable animals in the degree of neural control they have of the pigment in their skin, with the ability to communicate by changing color and pattern, and even flashing moving color changes.
2004-09-02 Surprised Anglers Land Rare Squid (HeraldNet)
...A closer look showed the creatures were big squid and, soon, the dudes aboard had landed eight or 10, both on anchovies and on tuna jigs. The squid were three to five feet in length and one weighed over 10 pounds.
2004-08-24 Giant Squid Trucked To Auckland For Autopsy (Stuff.nz)
A 300kg giant squid found on Farewell Spit yesterday will be trucked to Auckland for an autopsy by a squid specialist Steve O'Shea at Auckland University. UPDATE 2004-08-30: Giant Squid To Go On Show.
2004-08-21 Large Squid Caught On Video (NOAA)
On Aug 10, Operation Deep Scope captured video of a 6-foot squid, initially identified as a Mastigoteuthis, deep in the Gulf of Mexico.
2004-08-13 Rare Giant Squid Caught Off Canary Islands (NBC)
The squid measures nearly 30 feet long and weighs 222 pounds. It was found tangled in the fishermen's nets. It had already died.
2004-08-05 Deep Sea Search Finds Species Surprises (MSNBC)
Two squid and a fish among likely new discoveries
2004-07-23 Nautiluses & Ammonites Are Numerous In Moscow Metro (Pravda)
The Moscow metro can be visited as a museum of paleontology.
2004-07-07 Little Suckers' Deep Secrets (The Mercury)
The bountiful world of octopus, squid, cuttlefish and nautilus remained a mystery, a leading researcher told the Australian Marine Science Association conference yesterday.
2004-07-06 Sink Or Swim Time For Cutie-Pie Cuttlefish (The Australian)
Thousands of cross-dressing giant Australian cuttlefish engage in a three-month breeding frenzy off the South Australian coast every year. Also: Help Needed On Underwater Sex Life and Sexy Fish Could Boost Australia Tourism
2004-06-17 Octopus Lays Eggs After Successful Mating (AP)
J-1 was doing more than whispering sweet nothings to Aurora as the two clutched each other in a deep embrace in a secluded corner last month.
2004-06-15 Octopuses Have A Preferred Arm (Nature)
Most octopuses have a favourite arm, zoologists have discovered. This is the first time they have been found to show any bias when choosing which of their eight limbs is right for the job.
2004-06-09 PHOTO: Reaching out (Newport News)
The new, as-yet-unnamed occupant of the octopus tank at Hatfield Marine Science Center stretches to greet Michelle Osorio of Aumsville, Ore.
2004-06-06 Britain Fights For Giant Squid (Telegraph)
Britain is expecting a fight with other EU fishing nations on Monday as it calls for a United Nations ban on deep-sea trawling to preserve creatures such as the giant squid.
2004-06-03 Grants Lag On Squid (Cape Cod Times)
Experts believe genetic differences offer key to fishery regulations (includes photo of preserved giant squid eye.)
2004-05-22 Invisible The Latest Colour Of Cuttlefish In Crisis (The Australian)
Six years ago diver, Tony Bramley couldn't stand on the rocky shelves of South Australia's Upper Spencer Gulf without treading on a giant cuttlefish.
2004-05-21 Vestigial Ink Sacs In An Octopus (Pharyngula)
"We suggest that ink is released by H. lunulata not as an adaptive defense, but rather as an artifact of unusually strong mantle contraction."
2004-05-21 Fisherman Claims Largest Octopus Catch In British Waters (Scotsman.com)
A fisherman has caught an octopus believed to be the largest of its kind found in British waters.
2004-05-17 The Squid Hunter (The New Yorker)
Can Steve O'Shea capture the sea's most elusive creature?
2004-05-13 Aging Octopus Finds Love At Last (AP)
It looks like J-1 is in love. After meeting the very fetching and slightly younger Aurora, he changed color and his eight arms became intertwined with hers.
2004-05-05 Giant Squid Leaves Sex To Chance (AFP)
The giant squid is not especially choosy when it comes to sex and will mate blind without checking if the object of its affections is male or female, a German researcher said today.
2004-05-04 Giant Squid, Tall Tales And Truth (New York Times)
With a length up to 75 feet, the giant squid, Architeuthis, is the largest invertebrate on earth. But it is also the most elusive.
2004-04-23 Super-Intelligent Octupus Has Short Life Span (Kinston Free Press)
North Carolinians, meet your neighbor: Octopus vulgaris.
2004-04-20 Make Or Break Time For Cuttlefish (Whyalla News)
The State Government must survey the population and expand its protection area now, or the spawning congregation will disappear forever, according to local diver Tony Bramley.
2004-04-16 Rare Octopus Find Excites Scientists (MSN)
Conservationists are excited about the discovery of a rare greater argonaut, a type of octopus about the size of a dinner plate.
2004-04-09 Squid Hox Genes (Pharyngula)
Genetics of squid ontogeny and phylogeny. Also: Meet the Vampire Squid, Vampyroteuthis infernalis!
2004-04-08 ANIMAL TRACKER: Cuttlefish (Japan Times)
Japanese name: Kouika
2004-03-29 An Octopus Teaches Kids About Its Life And Death (Caller.com)
Nautie was to stay for just weeks, but then came the eggs.
2004-03-26 Puzzles Keep Giant Octopus On Its Toes (Scotsman)
Aquarium staff are keeping a playful giant octopus out of mischief with a specially-designed puzzle box.
2004-03-22 Envisat Fishes Up Facts Behind Chilean Giant Squid Invasion (ESA)
Masses of large ocean-going squid have inundated the shores of Southern Chile, alarming local fishermen who fear these carnivorous invaders could threaten fish stocks. (Photos)
2004-02-18 Here's Looking At You, Squid (Daily Telegraph)
This is no ordinary squid. Lurking in the dark depths of the Southern Ocean, it gives a first glimpse of what lies in areas never before explored. (Photo)
2004-02-17 Secrets Of Spawning Squid (Magnetic Times)
At about 9am on October 23rd 2003, over the shallow reef flat at Watson's Bay, Lizard Island, I saw two Sepioteuthis hovering quietly in mid water... (Very nice photo set)
2004-02-16 Handle This Octopus With Kid Gloves -- Up To Eight Of Them (Seattle PI)
Thousands of people watched as Loki, the 3-year-old giant Pacific octopus, began his blind date with the coy lady octopus, Freya, at the Seattle Aquarium two days ago.
2004-02-16 They Solved The Mystery Of The Blob, Is The Giant Squid Next? (The Oracle)
Overview of what is known about giant squid, starting with recount of the Chilian Blob incident from last July.
2004-02-15 Aquarium Lets Visitors Get Past The Glass (Oregon Live)
"Octopus Encounter" is a one-hour tour offering participants the opportunity to experience the giant Pacific octopus as up-close and personal as it gets without donning dive gear
2004-01-08 Scientists Discover Luminous Squid (AP)
A Hawaiian squid is shining new light on optical nanotechnology: the creature has a built-in flashlight made up of a previously unknown type of proteins dubbed "reflectins". More: SciAm, Ananova (nice photo)
2004-01-08 New Giant Squid Predator Found (BBC)
The little known sleeper shark that lives in waters off Antarctica is only the second creature known to science that hunts giant squid for food.
2004-01-03 Tentacle Sex (Pharyngula)
Overview of a pair of papers on squid mating.
2003-12-03 Fisherman Catches Octopus In Arkansas Lake (KAIT 8)
The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission says an Illinois fisherman caught a live octopus at Lake Conway near Mayflower earlier this week. Another, longer article with photo.
2003-11-25 Tasty Tentacles: Squid Jigging Lets Local Anglers' Taste Buds Squirm With Delight (Seattle Times)
Squid jigging has caught on fast around Puget Sound and is a rather unique fishery because the best action occurs mainly in winter and in the dead of night.
2003-11-20 Peorian Finds Octopus In His Toilet (PJStar)
Origin of tentacled mollusk a mystery: "I know they don't live in the river." UPDATE: It was a prank.
2003-11-05 Erectile Tissue Found in Octopus 'Fingers' (Reuters)
Researchers said on Wednesday they had found erectile tissue in the tentacle of a male octopus, the first time such tissue has been seen in an invertebrate. Another article. And another.
2003-11-03 Octopuses Sticky Hit In Seward (Anchorage Daily News)
Glistening appendages uncoiled in snakelike waves from the gurgling surface, reaching this way and that, then wrapping tightly around Kansteiner's hands.
2003-11-02 Squid May Help Solve Evolutionary Mystery (Star-Bulletin)
University of Hawaii scientists hope to explain the explosion of new species about 535 million years ago
2003-10-20 Octopus Eye For The 'Image-Conscious' Guy (ABC)
Researcher zeroing in on leggy marine creature for vision models.
2003-10-06 Squid Research Helps Study Of Brains (AP)
The squid axon is so useful in the general study of nerves that some joke the squid deserves a Nobel Prize for its contributions to science.
2003-10-05 Giant Squid Under Scrutiny (MSN.nz)
A team of New Zealand scientists believes it has worked out how to film giant squid.
2003-10-04 School Of Squid Startles Anglers (Statesman Journal)
"If they make a movie about it, a good title would be 'Beaks.'" See also Deep Sea Quest For Swordfish Leads To Quality Time With Squid for more Oregonian Humboldt terror.
2003-10-03 Giant Squid 'Eat Each Other' (Stuff)
New research suggests the endangered giant squid is not contributing to its survival as a species - because it preys on itself. (See also Grisly Find In Squid Stomach which includes nice photo of claws.)
2003-09-26 The Octopus As Eyewitness (Wired News)
Robots and people may soon be looking at the world through octopus eyes.
2003-09-25 Octopuses Get Erections (Nature)
Octopuses can get erections, US researchers have discovered. They are the first soft-bodied animal found to have erectile tissue.
2003-09-23 Silicon Chip Mimics Octopus Retina (Science Daily)
A University at Buffalo optical engineer has created a silicon chip that mimics the structure and functionality of an octopus retina.
2003-09-18 Spanish Navy Shocks Blamed For Giant Squid Deaths (Reuters)
Shockwaves from scientific tests carried out by the Spanish navy have killed four giant squid -- one the length of a bus -- off Spain's coast in recent days, the head of a marine protection agency said on Thursday.
2003-09-18 Sex Trap For Giant Squid (BBC)
A team of scientists from New Zealand is hoping to use sex to record the first ever images of a live giant squid. "This is the dream - we're going to get this sensational footage of the giant squid trying to do obscene things with the camera."
2003-09-17 Scientists Investigate Mysterious Squid Deaths (Reuters)
Scientists are trying to find out what caused two enormous squids, one of them 40 feet long, to wash up dead on Spain's northern coast this week.
2003-09-15 Rare Deep-Sea Nursery Discovered (Discovery News)
Deep-sea explorers have discovered an unprecedented "hot-spot" nursery of rare fish and octopuses off the coast of Northern California.
2003-09-14 The Octopus: Plentiful Tentacles, With Intelligence To Match (Herald Tribune)
The intrepid divers of Captain Cousteau's good ship Calypso were intent only on an experiment involving an octopus. Their question: Can an octopus think? To find out, they were using a lobster to tempt a common Octopus vulgaris.
2003-09-13 Hood Canal Closes To Fishing -- Again (The Sun)
Low oxygen, which caused a similar problem last year, is blamed for the deaths of octopuses.
2003-09-11 Firefly Squid (Japan Times)
Japanese name: Hotaru ika. Scientific name: Watasenia scintillans.
2003-09-05 Graduate Student Catches Giant Squid In Bering Sea (Daily Mississippian)
Will Bet-Sayad, a graduate student in biology, recently caught a giant squid in the Bering Sea.
2003-09-05 Scientists Find Fish And Octopi Nursery School (Business Journal)
Deep in the cold waters of the Pacific Ocean off Northern California, scientists from MBARI have discovered an undersea nursery, where groups of fish and octopus brood their eggs, like chickens on their nests.
2003-08-28 Old Genes, New Tricks (The Scientist)
A role for highly conserved Hox genes in the evolution of novel molluscan structures.
2003-08-24 Sea Creature's Remains Land Up In Squid Fan's Fridge (Sunday Times, SA)
The remains of one of the most mysterious creatures on Earth are lying in a fridge in Hermanus.
2003-08-19 Friendly Octopus Has Got A Hold Over Keepers (Western Morning News)
A giant octopus has become so attached to his keepers at Newquay's Blue Reef Aquarium that he has taken to climbing out of his underwater display to grab hold of them.
2003-08-19 Divers Find No Evidence Of Attacks (Whyalla News)
An SA Research and Development Institute dive team has found no evidence of yellowtail kingfish feeding on cuttlefish in the spawning grounds off Whyalla.
2003-08-02 Mother Octopus Gives All For Brood (Gulf Live)
Many parents make heavy sacrifices to ensure the well-being of their children, but the mother octopus takes that duty to a higher level. She guards her eggs until she starves to death.
2003-08-01 Scientist To Use Scent To Attract Sex-Crazed Giant Squid (Stuff.co.uz)
New Zealand squid expert Steve O'Shea says he will mount a new expedition in July next year to film "sex-crazed" giant squid in the wild.
2003-07-18 Researchers Shed Light On Mysterious Jumbo Squid (National Geographic)
Elusive and cannibalistic, the Humboldt squid has a reputation so fearsome that it has earned the nickname "red devil." But to William Gilly, a biology professor at Stanford University in Palo Alto, the mysterious squid, which can reach six feet (1.8 meters) long, is a beautiful sea creature that provides important ecological clues.
2003-07-11 Chilean Experts Say Beached "Blob" A Sperm Whale (Reuters)
Chilean scientists their study of a huge blob of flesh found on a Pacific beach concluded it was the carcass of a sperm whale, not a giant octopus.
2003-07-10 Museum Receives Rare Fossil (CBC)
A 71-million-year old fossil of a squid-like marine animal (an ammonite) has been given to the Royal Tyrell Museum.
2003-07-07 Ten Creepiest Creatures From Deep Down Under (CNN)
Photo gallery includes finned octopus & jewel squid.
2003-07-02 Squid Population Hit By Cadmium Buildup (Bangkok Post)
Decline in predators disrupts food chain.
2003-07-02 Giant Squid To Steal Spotlight At Museum (ABC.net.au)
A giant squid is set to steal the show at the South Australian Museum's upcoming exhibition, "Life in the Deep".
2003-07-01 Giant Sea Creature Baffles Chilean Scientists (Reuters)
Chilean scientists were baffled today by a huge, gelatinous sea creature found washed up on the southern Pacific coast and were seeking international help identifying the mystery specimen.
2003-06-24 Weird Ocean Life Surprises (BBC)
Scientists have found weird new sea creatures including a "wonky-eyed jewel squid", that has a left eye much larger than its right. The big eye looks up for food, the small one looks down for predators.
2003-05-24 Operation Squid (NZ Herald)
Steve O'Shea is a scientist whose work hunting the giant squid is well-known around the world, but largely unheard of at home. That situation is about to change.
2003-05-20 Rare Shell Found On High Tide Mark (Stuff.co.nz)
A beautiful intact paper nautilus shell lying on the high tide line just South of Baylys Beach proved a rare find for visitor, Julie Pearce.
2003-05-18 Mathematics Reveals The Cuttlefish's Wink (New Scientist)
The remarkable visual vocabulary of cuttlefish, which change the colour of their skin in a flash for communication or camouflage, is being catalogued with the help of a mathematical technique borrowed from signal processing.
2003-04-30 Fossil Find Adds Excitement To Freehold Twp. Project (News Transcript)
Expert believes ammonite remains date back 65 million years in Earth's history.
2003-04-29 Ancient Nautilus Fossils Discovered In N. China Province (People's Daily)
Fossils of the nautilus, a cephalopod mollusc, dating back 400 million years have been discovered in Xinglong County, in north China's Hebei province.
2003-04-29 Aquarium Shells Out For Salt Water (BBC)
The aquarium's Giant Pacific Octopus needs clean water every day, simply because it eats so much and produces a lot of waste.
2003-04-25 Colossal Squid Goes On Display At Te Papa (NZ Herald)
Its name really is "colossal", and this weekend offers a rare chance to see how just how big it really is.
2003-04-23 "Colossal Squid" Revives Legends Of Sea Monsters (National Geographic)
Last month fishermen in the icy Ross Sea encountered a deep-sea giant.
2003-04-21 UA Engineers Create Octopi Tracking Device (Daily Wildcat)
UA students and researchers have taken their research to new depths - to the bottom of the ocean.
2003-04-11 Fossil Findings (WCF Courier)
Local retiree on trail of ancient ammonites in Big Sky country.
2003-04-11 Octopus Party Held At Hatfield (Daily Barometer)
Contest to decide name of Hatfield Marine Science Center's newest member.
2003-04-01 Colossal Squid Caught (ZPI Cephlopod News)
Fishermen near Antarctica have caught a rare, virtually intact specimen of Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni (or as it is now being called, the "colossal squid") -- a very large, very aggressive squid with scores of razor-sharp hooks on its tentacles. Special report with links and semi-exclusive quote from Steve O'Shea.
2003-03-26 Council Hopes Cuttlefish Study To Help Boost Tourism (ABC Online)
Whyalla City Council hopes a feasibility study into the city's rare cuttlefish aggregation zone will develop the tourist attraction into a major tourism industry.
2003-03-26 Quest For The Giant Squid (Straits Times)
He has trawled the deepest, darkest ocean depths in search of an elusive giant. But Dr Clyde Roper, giant squid-hunter extraordinaire, has yet to meet his quarry eye to eye.
2003-03-12 Militaries Study Animals for Cutting-Edge Camouflage (National Geographic)
Cuttlefish perform stunning optical illusions. And by understanding the processes involved, researchers hope to create materials that could make advancing armies almost invisible.
2003-03-10 Octopuses Holding Their Own (Bremerton Sun)
A recent survey found about the same number of the eight-legged creatures as last year.
2003-02-26 American Legion Serving Squid For Lunch (Free Lance)
The American Legion San Benito Post 69 is in somewhat of a financial crisis, which it hopes to overcome with its first Squid Lunch fundraiser Saturday, March 1.
2003-02-24 Octopus Learns To Do The Twist (Reuters)
A common octopus in a German zoo has learned to open jars of shrimps by watching zoo attendants perform the act underwater.
2003-02-18 Fossil Find Puts Fayetteville On Paleontological Map ... Again (NWA News)
About 325 million years ago, a squid-like creature known as an actinoceratoid nautiloid made its home in the tropical water that covered what is now Fayetteville.
2003-02-17 Armed And Mysterious In Puget Sound (Seattle PI)
Starbuck was reluctant to ship out yesterday. He turned bright red in annoyance as Roland Anderson tried to coax him off the dock for his return trip to sea.
2003-02-16 Blind Date Tanks For Octopuses (Seattle Times)
After Magic the octopus gave her Valentine's Day blind date the cold shoulder -- or maybe eight of them -- she was released into Puget Sound by her human keepers.
2003-02-14 Hoping For A Sixteen-arm Embrace At The Seattle Aquarium (Seattle Times)
Romance comes to the waterfront Seattle Aquarium on Friday, when a giant Pacific octopus named Magic will find her tank festooned with hearts and red roses and perhaps vibrating slightly with the song stylings of Barry White.
2003-02-13 An Octopus's Garden (Bremerton Sun)
Scuba divers are filling their tanks and rounding up buddies to participate in Seattle Aquarium's fourth annual survey of giant Pacific octopuses.
2003-02-12 "Walnut-Size" Male Octopus Seen Alive For First Time (National Geographic)
Imagine if your spouse was 40,000 times heavier and a hundred times larger than you. This is reality for the male blanket octopus, which was recently spotted alive for the first time off Australia's northern coast.
2003-02-11 Just A Bunch Of Suckers For A Story Old As Life Itself (The Plain Dealer)
Mama Puddin' didn't die alone.
2003-02-07 A Desirable Pet For Every Home (DPA)
An octopus called Frieda at the Munich zoo has joined a small and elite but growing number of mollusks that have learned to open jar lids with their tentacles.
2003-02-05 Bizarre "Gunslinger" Octopus Caught For First Time (ABC Online)
For the first time, the tiny male of a bizarre species of octopus, which carries a slew of stinging weapons and is 100 times smaller than its females, has been captured alive by Australian scientists off the Great Barrier Reef.
2003-01-30 Tales From The Octopus Garden (Tacoma News Tribune)
In the 1960s, Baggaley participated in the popular World Octopus Wrestling Championships, held annually at Titlow Beach.
2003-01-23 325-Million-Year-Old Fossil Found in Ark (AP)
University of Arkansas students unearthed the world's largest fossil of the squid-like, straight-shelled cephalopod at a city intersection as cars and trucks zipped by them.
2003-01-23 Love That Costs A Leg Or Two (The Age)
A male member of the world's most sexually unequal animal species has finally been found alive.
2003-01-15 Giant Squid Attacks French Boat (Nature)
French sailors taking part in the round-the-world Jules Verne Trophy say they have come across one of the most elusive monsters of the sea - the giant squid.
2003-01-08 Nature Inspires Colour-Change Gel (Nature)
Chameleon polymer mimics squid and octopi.
2003-01-03 Notorious Sex Pest Of The Animal World Has The Perfect Excuse For Serial Groping (Independent UK)
Pity the poor male greater blue-ringed octopus. And pity his girlfriends as well.
2002-12-16 "We Don't Know What It's Called, But It Comes With Chips" (SMH)
Australia knows so little about its marine life that it is possible to buy squid and cuttlefish that have not even been named, according to a Federal Government report.
2002-12-15 Tot Plays With Deadly Octopus (Sunday Times [AU])
Beachgoers have been warned to stay away from the deadly blue-ringed octopus -- after a Perth toddler was found playing with one this week.
2002-12-09 Scientists Probe Squid Deaths (Monterey Herald)
Impact of natural toxin investigated.
2002-12-03 It's An Octopus' Garden At The State Aquarium (Atlantic County News)
A hidden "pregnancy," a mother's death and 40 newborns.
2002-11-17 Pair Not After A Quick Squid (Sunday Times [AU])
A Fremantle-based company has established WA's first commercial octopus fishery.
2002-10-28 Whyalla Cuttlefish Colony Facing Extinction (Australian Broadcasting Corp.)
A world-renowned natural marvel in South Australia is under threat.
2002-10-26 Nature's Lessons Sometimes Seem Cruel (Cleveland Plain Dealer)
Happy Mother's Day, Mama Puddin'. Someone should say it, since you'll be long dead by next May.
2002-10-11 Global Warming May Have Caused Giant Squid Deaths (Reuters)
Global warming could be behind the mysterious deaths of giant squid off the north coast of Spain, a marine biologist said on Friday.
2002-09-24 Bottled Baby Octopuses Turn Out To Be Pygmies (New York Times)
In century-old jars of alcohol on museum shelves in Paris and Washington and off the coasts of Indonesia, Senegal and the Caribbean, zoologists are stumbling upon dozens of species of tiny octopuses once believed to be babies of their larger relatives.
2002-09-11 Scientists Sketch Out Life After Mankind (Ananova)
Scientists say mankind will be replaced by giant land squid, flying killer fish and intelligent baboons
2002-09-11 Thais Warned Over Deadly Pet Octopus (BBC)
The Thai authorities have reportedly called on owners of the deadly blue-ring octopus to surrender the animals over safety fears.
2002-09-10 South Africa Plans Octopus Hunt (BBC)
South Africa plans to trial commercial octopus fishing to target lucrative export markets in Europe and Asia.
2002-09-05 Deadly Octopus High On List Of Fab, Fad Pets (Bangkok Post)
Colourful and cute, no known antidote.
2002-08-29 Giant Squid Washes Up On Portuguese Beach (Reuters)
A giant squid has washed up on a Portuguese beach, a rare occurrence for the deep-water creature, a museum spokeswoman said on Thursday.
2002-08-07 Investigation Launched Into Strange "Flying Octopus" Attacks In India (Orange Today)
Villagers in Uttar Pradesh claim to have been attacked by a creature described as resembling a flying octopus which targets people's faces.
2002-08-07 They Came From The Deep (Independent News UK)
They're big, they're slithery, they're terrifying, they've never been seen alive -- and now, it's reported, they're taking over the world, with a greater total weight as a species than the entire human race.
2002-08-01 Global Warming Creates Monster Squid? (Discovery.com)
Global warming is causing squid to grow abnormally large and speeding up their breeding cycles, an Australian scientist said Thursday.
2002-07-31 Giant Squid "Taking Over World" (News.com.au)
Giant squid are taking over the world, well at least the oceans, and they are getting bigger. According to scientists, squid have overtaken humans in terms of total bio-mass.
2002-07-26 Crews Removing Squid From La Jolla Beach (Yahoo.com)
City work crews Friday removed nine tons of dead jumbo squid that had blanketed La Jolla Cove and the Children's Pool area since Thursday.
2002-07-22 Giant Squid Set For Icy Outback Roadshow (IOL)
A giant squid with unusual muscle growth found washed up on an Australian beach was not a new species as first thought but a damaged specimen, a New Zealand scientist said on Tuesday.
2002-07-22 Giant Squid Washes Up On Beach (CNN.com)
Scientists in Australia are investigating what may be a new species of giant squid, after one of the deep sea creatures washed up on a Tasmanian beach over the weekend.
2002-06-13 Tuning In To A Deep Sea Monster (CNN.com)
Scientists have revealed a mysterious recording that they say could be the sound of a giant beast lurking in the depths of the ocean.
2002-06-12 Octopus Learns How To Unscrew Jars For Food (Independent Online)
An octopus found on a beach has discovered how to unscrew jars to get at the food inside, said an official at the Blue Reef Aquarium in Tynemouth in northeastern England on Wednesday.
2002-05-08 Falklands Faces Up To Squid Nightmare (Independent Online)
The Falkland Islands are suffering from a catastrophic fall in squid catches, the archipelago's chief source of income, scientists warn on Thursday.
2002-03-28 Giant Octopus Puzzles Scientists (BBC)
What is thought to be the biggest octopus ever found has been caught in waters off New Zealand.
2002-03-27 Giant Octopus Dredged Up Off New Zealand (Reuters)
Scientists have identified what they believe is the largest octopus ever seen, a 13 foot long giant hauled from the depths near New Zealand's remote Chatham Islands.
2002-02-27 Giant Squid Babies Captured (Discovery News)
For the first time ever, researchers have gotten a brief look at living babies of the deep sea's most elusive known creature - the giant squid.
2002-02-17 Freedom For Sabrina The Octopus (The Seattle Times)
Sabrina was released back into Puget Sound yesterday afternoon.
2002-02-06 Market Embraces Squid Art (The Seattle Times)
2002-01-15 Fishermen Capture A Monster Of The Deep (The Herald, Glasgow)
A Scottish fishing boat has landed a giant squid - one of the world's largest and most feared sea creatures.
2001-12-20 "Weird" New Squid Species Discovered in Deep Sea (National Geographic)
Deep-sea submersibles have spotted and filmed a new type of squid in the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico, and the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian Oceans.
2001-12-20 Deep-Sea Monster Caught On Tape (MSNBC)
Giant squid is something "fundamentally different," illustrating how little we know about sea's depths.
2001-12-20 Researchers Discover Huge, Unusual Squid at Deep Ocean Bottom (ABC News)
It's more than 20 feet long, has 10 limbs that drape from its crown like puppet strings and swims by flapping two huge fins above its head.
2001-10-24 Scientists Making Pizza Bases From Squid (Ananova.com)
Japanese food researchers are developing a way to use squid to make pizza bases, rather than flour.
2001-10-23 International Conference on Cephalopods Opens in Agadir (ArabicNews.com)
An international conference on cephalopods and pelagic fish started proceedings in Agadir Monday to debate topical issues related to fishery industries.
2001-09-21 Newfound Octopus Impersonates Fish, Snakes (National Geographic)
Scientists have discovered what may be the ideal partner for a game of charades: A long-armed octopus that mimics poisonous creatures of the sea to avoid its predators.
2001-09-07 Octopus Arms Found to Have "Minds" of Their Own (National Geographic)
2001-09-07 Octopus arms strike out alone (Nature)
Octopus arms strike out alone Robot research could learn from octopus limbs.
2001-09-06 Octopus arms do the thinking (BBC)
Reaching for something can sometimes be tricky for humans, but for the octopus, it is a much trickier task.
2001-09-14 Fishermen capture 16ft squid (Times UK)
A giant squid that would have been 16ft long had all its tentacles been intact has been captured by Spanish fishermen trawling off the Azores.
2001-09-04 An Octopus With Many Acts (ABC News)
Newly-Discovered Species Mimics Creatures More Lethal Than Itself.
2001-08-17 Nick's "Oswald" the octopus will embrace tots (Reuters/Variety)
Parents looking for a safe yet stimulating haven for preschoolers will gladly welcome "Oswald," a friendly and contemplative blue octopus, into their homes.
2001-07-25 Craving calamari: Are fishermen catching too much squid? (Sacramento Bee)
Fishermen catch close to 90,000 tons of squid off the California coast every year, making squid California's largest commercial fishery.
2001-02-07 Australian Museum Gets Elusive Giant Squid (BBC)
A museum in Australia has taken possession of a near-perfect specimen of one of the world's most elusive creatures -- a giant squid.
2001-01-22 Florence the octopus produces eight surprises (Ananova)
Staff at a garden centre are celebrating after an octopus produced octuplets.
2000-11-03 Giant Deep-Sea Creature Amazes Spanish Scientists (Reuters)
Fishermen off northern Spain have captured a giant specimen of a strange, light-emitting, deep sea cephalopod, scientists said Friday.
2000-08-30 How Squid Get Their Glow (Discovery.com)
Bobtailed squid emit a moon-like glow from their bellies as they glide through ocean waters at night. Now researchers have discovered the animals use a blob of mucus to capture the luminescent bacteria that give the squid their ghostly glimmer.
2000-07-03 Big Squid Breaks Record (BBC)
The biggest ever complete specimen of a secretive squid has been found in Antarctica.
2000-06-30 Gigantic Squid Washed Up In Antarctica (BAS)
Scientists have found a gigantic squid, over two metres long and weighing 29 kg, washed up dead on the beach at a British Antarctic Survey's Signy Research Station.
2000-06-18 Squid Battle: Science Vs. Cuisine (ABC News)
Scientists say they're a valuable resource for studying everything from the roots of Alzheimer's disease to the mechanics of vision. But gourmands like squid for a different reason - as a delicacy to eat.
2000-06-01 Octopus Opens Jam Jar in One Minute (Reuters)
Roger Moore the octopus has learned to unscrew a jam jar in just one minute.
2000-02-14 Scientists Reveal Monster Secrets (BBC)
One of the mythical creatures of the ocean has been found deep down in the waters off Tasmania.
1999-11-03 By the Light of a Sucker (inScight)
The ocean teems with animals that glow eerily, but researchers trying to explain this phenomenon, called bioluminescence, have been, well, in the dark. A report in today's Nature shines light on the topic by explaining the surprising evolution of light-producing organs in one species of finned octopus.
1999-10-13 New Home Lets Octopus Shake A Leg (Seattle Times)
The giant octopus has a new home at the Seattle Aquarium - almost four times bigger than the old one. But, judging by his body language, the resident cephalopod is not amused.
1999-09-09 Deadly Octopus Hatches A Brood (The Times UK)
A British aquarium has become the first to breed one of the world's deadliest creatures.
1999-07-15 Cross-dressing Cuttlefish (The Times UK)
what some giant cuttlefish lack in stature they make up for in ingenuity. Scientists have discovered that small males steal sexual partners from under the noses of larger rivals by tranvestism.
1999-06-23 Scientist Is Tickled Pink By Discovery Of Octopus (Electronic Telegraph)
A pink apparition seen by oil workers deep in the ocean off the Shetland Islands may be a previously unknown species of octopus.
1998-08-04 Suckers for Fun (inScight)
Dogs do it. Dolphins do it. Now it appears that even octopuses, at least some of them, play.