Cephalopod Update
Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water: it's the Cephalopod Update!I wasn't instantly impressed when Kiarash started in about the fearsome Humboldt squid the other night, since it shares a name with the stoniest known county/university. (Stoned squid...wouldn't that make the be-all and end-all of Youtube videos...) But it turns out these things are pretty exciting. Quoth National Geographic,
"Known as aggressive predators, Humboldt squid have powerful arms and tentacles, excellent underwater vision and a razor-sharp beak that easily tears through the flesh of their prey. They can also rapidly change their skin color in what appears to be a complex communication system."
Their diet consists of the usual fish, but they also love to snack on fishermen - and each other. In turn, the squid are preyed upon by whales. Well, I think I know what my next tattoo will be.
They may lack the quiet grace of little guys like the nautilus and my personal favorite, the striped pajama squid (which is really just a fancy cuttlefish if you do your research), but for their sheer shock and awe factor, these guys are the quarterbacks of cephalopods. I'm sorry, I can't in good conscience use a football analogy. I don't know the first thing about football. Let's say they're the tenors, not quarterbacks: abundant, yet impressive, but not quite as high on the "how-is-that-even-possible" scale as the colossal squid, the coloratura of the cephalopods.
For instance:
"The squid are believed to live at depths of 660 to 2,300 feet (200 to 700 meters). They may be elusive in some parts, but they're not rare. [Stanford biologist William] Gilly estimates that 10 million squid may be living in a 25-square-mile (65-square-kilometer) area outside Santa Rosalia, Mexico." (National Geographic again)
You might be wondering, "that's nice, but how does it affect my life?" And that's the fun part. They're staging a massive invasion off the coast in Ventura County. So I have to to urge those of you in Southern California: hang around the docks. Befriend a fisherman and sweet-talk him into taking you out on his boat so you can see this for yourself. Do this for me.
Labels: cephalopod update, science, the life aquatic
posted by Leah @ 11:05 AM
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