Animal A Day!

Haliphron atlanticus The Seven-arm Octopus has a misleading name. They do actually have eight arms, like all Octopuses do, it's just that one of the arms (the hectocotylus, used for egg fertilization) is often curled up on the males' bodies, making it difficult to see. Females of the species do that have that issue. Seven-arm Octopuses live in both the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans. It was believed to live only in the former until about fifteen years ago, when one was caught off the coast of New Zealand. Interestingly, these creatures have also been found at both the sea floor AND near the surface, which is unusual for Octopuses. The species is also notable because they are quite large. In fact, they are the largest Octopuses in the world, and can measure over 11ft in length! IUCN Status : Not Listed Location : Atlantic and Pacific Oceans Size : Length up to 11ft (3.5m) Classification :  Phylum : Mollusca -- Class : Cephalopoda -- Order : Octopoda Family : ...

Enteroctopus dofleini The Giant Pacific Octopus is regarded as being the largest of all the Octopus species. Some specimens have weighed in at 150lbs! They have arms that can reach six feet in length, and the females are generally larger than the males. As with many Octopus species, they have special pigment cells in their skin that allow them to change color to match their surroundings. As the name denotes, this Cephalopod lives in the Pacific Ocean-- specifically in the North Pacific. You'll find these Octopuses at a wide range of depths, from the shallow coasts to waters as deep as 1,500ft. They feed on Mollusks and Crustaceans, breaking shells with their strong beaks. For the extra tough prey, they have a organ called the Salivary Papilla. They can use this to bore into shells, and secrete saliva that can corrode the tough layers. Giant Pacific Octopuses have a surprisingly short life-span. Five years tends to be their maximum life expectancy, and most live even fewer y...

Amphioctopus marginatus The Coconut Octopus is a rather unusual Cephalopod, in fact, they are one of only two different Octopus species that has been observed walked in a bipedal nature . Furthermore, depending on how you look at it, they actually use tools! The tropical waters of the western Pacific Ocean is where there creatures call home, dwelling in areas where there is a sandy bottomed floor. They aren't especially large-- their heads are about 3in long, while the tentacles measure an additional 6. They feed on small Crustaceans and Clams. Coconut Octopuses get their name from the fact that they use coconut shells for protection and shelter. They pick up discarded half shells and carry them around their soft bodies. When threatened, they can cover themselves with the shells, creating a permanent hiding place . There are many scientists who argue that this constitutes tool usage, while there are a handful that dispute the claim. IUCN Status :...

Nautilus pompilius The Nautilida Order contains six extant species and a handful of extinct ones, some of which date all the way back around 550 million years . They are primitive Cephalopods that often are given the "living fossil" moniker-- they have changed very little over the past several million years. The Chambered Nautilus is perhaps the best known of the bunch. They are large in size (one subspecies reaches just under a foot in shell diameter) and have a very widespread distribution across the Pacific. The shell of the Chambered Nautilus is covered in dark and light stripes-- a coloration pattern that camouflages them. The shell serves as protection, and also helps with buoyancy  as the Nautilus can fill and empty out different pockets with gas. As they grow, the shell gains new chambers, and full grown adults will have around 30 different compartments. Aside from the shell, the Chambered Nautilus displays several other interes...

Hapalochlaena lunulata The Greater Blue-ringed Octopus  is, interestingly, not even the largest of the Blue-ringed Octopuses. That honor goes to the confusingly named Lesser (or Southern) Blue-ringed Octopus, which is only a hair larger. In fact, all members of the Blue-ring groups are quite small-- most are only a few centimeters in body length, with tentacles only a tad longer.  The Greater Blue-ringed Octopus is distinctive among its family members in that it has a relatively large range. Most others live in a very specific watery area, but the Great Blue-ringed can be found in tropical waters throughout the Pacific Ocean, and in parts of the Indian Ocean as well. These Octopuses get their names from the bright blue circles that appear when they feel threatened. I should note that these rings are visible during calm periods as well, but they are much less noticeable. Those vibrant patches serve as warnings to predators because these guys are venomous! Greater Blue-r...

Euprymna scolopes The Hawaiian Bobtail Squid is an itty bitty little thing that has a mantle length of only around one inch! As the name suggests, they can be found off of Hawaiian waters, though they also live in other shallow coastal areas of the central Pacific as well. The most important thing that you need to know about the Hawaiian Bobtail Squid is has a symbiotic relationship with a bacteria known as Vibrio fischeri . The bacteria inhabit an organ in the Squid's mantle. The Squid feeds the Bacteria a solution of amino acids and sugar, and in return for the meal the Bacteria gives the Squid a defensive advantage. You see, the organ that the Bacteria lives in deals with light, and the Bacteria itself is bioluminescent. The Bacteria are able to determine the amount of light hitting the top of the Squid's mantle, and then emulate that on the underside. This makes it very difficult to see the Bobtail Squid when looking upwards. The Squids are not bo...

Teuthowenia pellucida Sometimes, when I don't have any suggestions lined up, I start doing Google searches for weird animal names, just to see if they exist. Apparently there is no such thing as a  "Pumpkin Squid," but that near-futile effort did lead me to todays animal, the awesomely named Googly-Eyed Glass Squid. There are about 60 different species of Glass Squid, all found within the Cranchiidae family. They can be found in oceans worldwide, and most share the common characteristic of having transparent bodies. The Googly-Eyed Glass Squid is no exception to this. Their small bodies (females are slightly larger than males) are transparent, and they posses very large eyes which give them their common name. They live in the deep oceans, around 7,500ft (2300m) down. Googly-Eyed Glass Squids have photophores on their tentacles and eyes that allow them to be bioluminescent. They also have the interesting ability to puff themselves up, making them seem much...

Spirula spirula Today we have another reader suggestion, Spirula spirula , also known as the Ram's Horn Squid. As the suggester points out, the shell of this creature may look very familiar, but most people probably don't know that it belongs to a tiny, deep sea cephalopod! The Ram's Head Squid can be found in tropical waters at depths as far as 3,300ft (1,000m). They are little things, with body lengths measuring only around 1.6in (40mm). The Ram's Head Squid has eight arms and two longer tentacles, all of which have suckers. Adults are able to partially draw them in to their mantle. Internal Shell The shell that we spoke up earlier is actually found completely within the squid, and it helps to control  buoyancy .  Because of that mechanism the Squids swim in a head-down motion. Ram's Head Squids only live about a year and a half, and a lot of their behavior is not well known due to their small size and deep s...

Vampire Squid Phylum : Mollusca Class : Cephalopoda Order : Vampyromorphida Family : Vampyroteuthidae Genus : Vampyroteuthis Species : V. infernalis Length : 1ft (30cm) IUCN Status : Not Listed Vampyroteuthis infernalis literally means "Vampire Squid from Hell," which is a scary name for a creature so small. They are remarkably interesting because they are the sole living members of the Vampyromorphida order, and the have traits of both Octopuses and Squids. When they were discovered and described in 1903, they were initially placed within the Octopus Order. The Vampire Squid is different from True Octopuses and Squids in a handful of ways. Their bodies posses the same color changing chromatophores that Squids have, but they lack the ability to actually change color. They have webbing between their eight arms, which is similar to Octopuses, but they also have two long filaments that can extend and retract. These filaments look similar to the two long tent...

(Image Source ) Phylum : Mollusca Class : Cephalopoda Order : Teuthida Family : Magnapinnidae Genus : Magnapinna Length : 5-23ft (1.5-7m) Weight : Unknown IUCN Status : Not listed I'm afraid that this entry might be a short one, simply because these Squid are still so unknown to us. There are five identified species, but two are still unnammed, and all five still hang in a bit of taxonomic limbo, subject to change with any sort of breakthrough. Big Fin Squid have been found in the deep waters of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. As their name denotes, they have large fins that extend outward from the mantle (their main body segment.) Big Fin Squids also have ten arms, all of about equal length and thickness. Many other squid species, in contrast, have eight shorter arms with two longer tentacles.The arms of Big Fin Squids are also typically hung at right angles, as if they have elbows. Only larval and juvenile Big Fin Squids have actually been physically studie...

Image from New York Daily News The 2010 World Cup ended yesterday, and while the world is abuzz with Spain's first win, there has also been a great deal of talk about Paul. Who is Paul? Paul is the Common Octopus "Oracle" who correctly picked the outcomes of all 7 of Germany's games, plus the World Cup Final. Treats were placed in boxes adorned with national flags. The treat eaten first was the winning team. Paul went 8 for 8. (Though he did make some blunders during the 2008 Euro) Anyway, Paul is retiring now, but in celebration of his strange cephalopod superpowers, enjoy some facts on the Common Octopus ( Octopus vulgaris )! Common Octopuses (Octopi is actually an incorrect plural term) are found in temperate and tropical coastal waters across a great deal of the planet. They live at depths shallower than 500 feet. Octopuses are carnivorous, and are active predators during the daytime. They feed primarily on crustaceans and mollusks, and they will actual...

Did you know that a cuttlefish is not actually a fish? It's a mollusk! They are actually more closely related to snails then they are to fish. Like squids, octopi, and nauteluses, the cuttlefish is a cephalopod. Members of class cephalopoda have been dated back 500 million years! There are currently 120 species of cuttlefish recognized, all of which live in shallow tropical and temperate waters around Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia. Cuttlefish have a pretty interesting mechanism built in to their bodies: the cuttlebone. Made primarily of aragonite, these structures act as buoyancy mechanisms, enabling the cuttlefish to float at a steady, desirable level. The existence of this bone is also what prevents the cuttlefish from surviving at deep depths, as they will implode when there is too much pressure. Cuttlebones are very rich in calcium, and are often given to caged pets like parakeets and reptiles as supplements . Cuttlefish have the ability to change their skin colo...