Friday Cephalopod: White Stripes

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Octopus ornatus

Figure from Cephalopods: A World Guide (amzn/b&n/abe/pwll), by Mark Norman.

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Saw a very impressive cephalopod in the underground aquarium at the Mall of America. Thought of you immediately. Also got to stroke a small shark and a ray. Good fun.

By Ian H Spedding (not verified) on 11 Aug 2006 #permalink

That's a particularly nice-looking cephalopod, PZ.

My inlaws just got back from seeing a large octopus at an aquarium in Seattle (or it could have been Vancouver; frankly, I wasn't paying that much attention). They were saying how gross and scary it was, with all the tentacles and suckers, etc. My sister-in-law even went so far as to delete the picture from her laptop.

Of course, I told them they were crazy and it was a cool and even beautiful creature. They didn't think so.

They are anti-cephalopod heathens. ;-)

In the past, I've had a hard time understanding your fascination with these critters, but I think I'm beginning to see the light. That is one beautiful creature. I guess I'm just a shallow person for being so into "appearances". I am a long-time scuba diver and would love to run into this guy on a dive.

I got _Cephalopods: A World Guide_ for my birthday and am very grateful to you for bringing it to my attention. I LOVE THEM!

Very pretty, but the way those tentacles are coiled would make me very nervous if I were approaching. Is that coloration actually a threat display?

By David Harmon (not verified) on 11 Aug 2006 #permalink