
Octopus briareus, the Caribbean reef octopus
Figure from Cephalopods: A World Guide (amzn/b&n/abe/pwll), by Mark Norman.
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PZ Myers is a biologist and associate professor at the University of Minnesota, Morris.
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A reading from the Book of Armaments, Chapter 4, Verses 16 to 20: Then did he raise on high the Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch, saying, "Bless this, O Lord, that with it thou mayst blow thine enemies to tiny bits, in thy mercy." And the people did rejoice and did feast upon the lambs and toads and tree-sloths and fruit-bats and orangutans and breakfast cereals… Now did the Lord say, "First thou pullest the Holy Pin. Then thou must count to three. Three shall be the number of the counting and the number of the counting shall be three. Four shalt thou not count, neither shalt thou count two, excepting that thou then proceedeth to three. Five is right out. Once the number three, being the number of the counting, be reached, then lobbest thou the Holy Hand Grenade in the direction of thine foe, who, being naughty in my sight, shall snuff it.
[Monty Python, "Monty Python and the Holy Grail"]
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Category: Cephalopods • Organisms
Posted on: October 26, 2007 6:00 AM, by PZ Myers

Figure from Cephalopods: A World Guide (amzn/b&n/abe/pwll), by Mark Norman.
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Comments
Posted by: Kerlyssa | October 26, 2007 9:20 AM
Friday Cephalopod: a pretty blue evil.
There, fixed it for you.
VIVE LE RESISTANCE! WE WILL NOT BOW TO THE TOO-MANY-LIMBED TYRANTS OF THE SEA!
Posted by: peter | October 26, 2007 9:27 AM
a cartoon
Posted by: Cuttlefish | October 26, 2007 9:44 AM
What a beautiful cephalopod!
And the comments--it really seems odd
That these two-legged freaks
(who have lips, and not beaks?)
Have the nerve to keep up their facade.
It is clear, the superior shapes
Of the cephalopods, to the apes,
Shows superior worth;
We will soon rule the earth
And we'll crush you like so many grapes.
Posted by: Matt | October 26, 2007 2:21 PM
Nice pic.
Hey, question: what is the function of the size of the web between the tentacles of various octupi? It seems to vary between species (yeah, I've been reading this blog too long and seen too many pics) and I'm wondering if it's got to do with adaptation for hunting or camo or something else entirely.
Posted by: JohnnieCanuck, FCD | October 26, 2007 2:46 PM
Assuming this is the same species as the one I saw, the picture doesn't do it justice. The colours, especially at night with a flashlight, are brilliant. It was near Puerto la Cruz, Venezuela, shyly trying to keep the marine life encrusted piling between itself and me.
Maybe it's a good thing to have very shy, intelligent beings as overlords.
Posted by: Aaron Kinney | October 26, 2007 3:51 PM
You sexy 'puss, you!
Posted by: Kerlyssa | October 26, 2007 11:42 PM
They're not SHY, they're STEALTHY, you damn collaborator. What are they so desperate to hide, huh?
Posted by: Bryson Tait | October 27, 2007 4:05 AM
Smile please.
Here's a happy cephalopod,
http://tolweb.org/Promachoteuthis_sulcus/19531/2007.05.30
Posted by: David Marjanović, OM | October 27, 2007 1:04 PM
La résistance.