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Half-Squid, Half-Octopus Discovered Off of Hawaii

Posted by Zonk on from the half-squid-half-octopus-all-disco-lover dept.

Otter writes "A unique creature that's been dubbed an 'octosquid' with eight arms and a squid-like mantle, was discovered off Hawaii. The creature, of a previously unknown species, was trapped in the net covering a 3,000 foot-deep intake tube for the Natural Energy Laboratory of Hawaii Authority. From the article: 'The octosquid was pulled to the surface, along with three rattail fish and half a dozen satellite jellyfish, and stayed alive for three days. According to War, the lab usually checks its filters once a month, but this time, it put a plankton net in one of the filters and checked it two weeks later. The pitch-black conditions at 3,000 feet below sea level are unfamiliar to most but riveting to scientists who have had the opportunity to submerge. The sea floor is full of loose sediment, big boulders and rocks, and a lot of mucuslike things floating in the water, which are usually specimens that died at the surface and drifted to the bottom.'"

5 of 170 comments (clear)

  1. Taningia danae by BWJones · · Score: 5, Interesting

    There have been 8 armed squid described before including the Taningia danae species by the same scientists, though our understanding of these animals is poor at best. Though I have to say I am puzzled as to why the Octosquid was assigned to the Mastigoteuthidae genus other than it seems to be a catchall genus for weird squid species that we do not know much about...

    Oh and hey Otter! What's up dude? I actually had no idea these guys were in Kona. Had that been known, I would have visited last time I was there.

    --
    Visit Jonesblog and say hello.
  2. Title is wrong by ucblockhead · · Score: 5, Interesting

    This is not "half squid, half octopus". This is a squid with eight arms that is no more related to octopuses than any other sort of squid.

    Squids and octopuses are far too far apart to breed.

    --
    The cake is a pie
    1. Re:Title is wrong by Squalish · · Score: 3, Interesting

      That appears to be a cave cricket, family Rhaphidophoridae.

      They do not weave webs, that I am aware of, and the particular species that infests my house do not chirp. Furthermore, they move very differently from most large spiders - they rarely move more than a foot without hopping at least some, and they can hop about two feet maximum. In a somewhat interesting(in an evolutionary sense) instinct, they often hop towards motion, which combined with their tendency to lie completely still afterward, presumably throws off cave predators better than hopping away.

      --
      People in Soviet Russia, however, appear to be afflicted with amusing juxtapositions of the aforementioned situation
  3. They have also discovered an "animal" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    From TFA,

    "We have one starfish-like creature that we can't even get the phylum (a primary division in the animal kingdom)," he said. "We've just labeled it 'animal.'"

  4. Died? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    So what is the cause of death when they find one of these things and it dies days later? Is it pressure sickness? Extreme shock?