Squid Cuts Body of Sexual Partner
Squid Cuts Body of Sexual Partner avatar

So was I thinking we could light a few candles, have some wine, and then… Yeah, squids are freaky…real freaky freaks. An article over at Practical Fish Keeping details the work of recent PhD Henk-Jan Hoving. His dissertation makes mine look like rainbows and unicorns. The thrust of his work was to study reproductive techniques . . . → Read More: Squid Cuts Body of Sexual Partner

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Kick off ’09 with a Marine Invert Calendar and Clock
Kick off ’09 with a Marine Invert Calendar and Clock avatar

SCAMIT (Southern California of Marine Invertebrate Taxonomists) has released the best calender of the year – a marine invertebrate calendar! Long time DSN reader Leslie Harris works at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County and put together this calendar to help support, “a non-profit dedicated to educating & supporting local taxonomists.” Not only . . . → Read More: Kick off ’09 with a Marine Invert Calendar and Clock

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Echinoderms, Cnidarians, & The Gastropods That Parasitize Them
Echinoderms, Cnidarians, & The Gastropods That Parasitize Them avatar

The recent Invertebrate Wars reminded me of spectacular, but often ignored, group of gastropods. The parasites! This is a group that I have totally geeked out on in the past. In my previous work I have focused on the Ptenoglossa likely a paraphyletic or polyphyletic group, established originally of unspecified rank by Gray (1853). It . . . → Read More: Echinoderms, Cnidarians, & The Gastropods That Parasitize Them

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On How Mollusks are Cooler Than Echinoderms (or anything else) Pt. 3: The Radula
On How Mollusks are Cooler Than Echinoderms (or anything else) Pt. 3: The Radula avatar

In general, among Mollusks, the mouth opens into a buccal cavity. In most classes of Mollusks, the buccal cavity contains a tongue called the odontophore. The odontophore possess multiple rows of teeth called radula that chitonous and flexible. Among Mollusks the number of teeth can range from a few to over 100,000. The size, . . . → Read More: On How Mollusks are Cooler Than Echinoderms (or anything else) Pt. 3: The Radula

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From The Desk of Zelnio: Alviniconcha hessleri
From The Desk of Zelnio: Alviniconcha hessleri avatar

Alviniconcha hessleri (Mollusca: Mesogastropoda: Provannidae) When you think of hydrothermal vents, what comes to mind first? Is it the gushing black smoke out of a chimney? Perhaps you envision the enormous tubeworms with their red velvety plumes sticking out of their white tubes. Some may even be familiar with the dense swarms of blind . . . → Read More: From The Desk of Zelnio: Alviniconcha hessleri

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Archive: Architeuthis is 3 Degrees from Kevin Bacon
Archive: <em>Architeuthis</em> is 3 Degrees from Kevin Bacon avatar

How separated is Architeuthis and Kevin Bacon you ask? As you might remember although the Giant Squid had some cameos in previous B movies, it really was not until 1954 in 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea that Mr. G. Squid hit the big time. In this movie, the Giant Squid shared the screen with . . . → Read More: Archive: Architeuthis is 3 Degrees from Kevin Bacon

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Giant Denizens of the Deep are Molluscs!
Giant Denizens of the Deep are Molluscs! avatar

The new squid diva is 24ft long. How does she measure up? I just happen to have data sitting on my computer to address that issue. Don’t ask…I lay awake at night thinking about the body size of marine organisms. Below is a histogram of every documented Architeuthis capture before 1997 (data are from The . . . → Read More: Giant Denizens of the Deep are Molluscs!

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Kraken Video!
Kraken Video! avatar

PZ beat me to the punch (I really think he should be penalized for the time zone difference). Japanese researchers, the same group that caught the photographs in 2004, have filmed a live giant squid. The research team, led by Tsunemi Kubodera, videotaped the giant squid at the surface as they captured it, on . . . → Read More: Kraken Video!

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Deep-Sea Organisms Are Invading
Deep-Sea Organisms Are Invading avatar

In the first wave attack ordered by the Squid Overlords, deep-sea microbes will invade the air. As you already know the second wave attack will be flesh eating sponges. Image from Octopus Pulp