If anyone is interested in pursuing (postgraduate) studies on cephalopods (octopus and squid) then I have a couple of rather interesting Masters (MSc) and Doctoral (PhD) research ideas that I'd like to see someone working on. We also have undergraduate marine biology degrees here - so even then you could play away with squid and octopus to your hearts content. We are based in Auckland, New Zealand, at the Auckland University of Technology, and although our department is not huge, it is building, with some very interesting science being done.

Subjects that I would like people to work on include systematics, comparative and functional morphology, life history, conservation and culture of cephalopods.

Available to us are some rather comprehensive museum collections of specimens (and these are constantly being expanded), and access to vessels. The collections contain many poorly known deep-sea species, and a few that are entirely new. We are also working away on techniques to keep some of these deep-sea squid and octopus alive.

If you are interested then please drop me a line. I cannot promise funding at this point in time, but am working on developing research scholarships. So, to reiterate, please don't get your hopes up, no promises as far as funding is concerned at this point in time.

I must say that New Zealand is truly a wonderful country, even if there are a lot of sheep!

Kindest

Steve

Dr Steve O'Shea
Senior Research Fellow
Earth & Oceanic Sciences Research Institute
Auckland University of Technology
Private Bag 92006 Auckland

Ph: 64-9-917-9999 extn 8244
Fax: 64-9-917-9973
email: steve.oshea@aut.ac.nz

Steve,

I would have to talk it over with my wife, but I would love to be in. I am re-applying to Humboldt State University this year as a Senior undergraduate in Marine Biology and Zoology, with a possible minor in psychology. How does behavioural work sound?

My one and only research internship was at Kennedy Space Center in the summer of 1996 with Florida AMU's Space Life Sciences Training program. I worked in the ecological monitoring program.

Well, we'll see either way. And if funding continues, I would like to consider a future application to your institution. Thanks for the heads up!

Sushi and Sake,

John

Come on in, the water's fine! :)

i can definitely say my interest is piqued, but i have to knock out this pesky undergrad work.... plus itd be a SLIGHT change in direction (not that its a bad thing, but does make things tougher)

I'm much in the same "tank" here as you folks...this is an interesting and fascinating opportunity, but I really must hammer out my Master's. :| Maybe things would be a bit different a year from now. Boy, it sure would be fun working with you guys! :heee: :notworth:

rusty

Steve,
When are you guys gonna go out and catch more Giant Squid Larvae? I watched that show on the Discovery Channel and It blew my mind. I wanna see you catch one and keep it alive so the world can watch it grow into a Giant and observe it alive. And when you do go out lookin for more again, will they show it on the Discovery Channel?

Mike, Tintenfisch and I are working REAL HARD to make this happen, soon.

Hopefully within the next 12 months we'll be out there doing it all over again, this time successfully.
Cheers
O

Hey White Kiboko, don't be too stressed about chanding direction, I did!!!

My Bachelors is a double in wait for it, behavioural psychology and behavioural zoology, then I did a masters on clams (marine science, and hey at least they're molluscs!!) during this time I got a part time job as research assistant to another great squid guy, Dr George Jackson and the rest as they say is history! (of course then I was stupid enough to say yes I'll do a PhD, BEFORE I checked on the funding situation doh! :roll: )

So it can be done!

J

Hey White Kiboko, don't be too stressed about chanding direction, I did!!!

and the rest as they say is history! So it can be done!

J

im not worried....amusing choice of words though..... my bs is going to be for history :) (but thats only after leaving comp sci) cephs are just a hobby...albeit one of my more interesting ones, but still at this stage, just a hobby....

Dr. O'Shea,
I must say I'd be very interested in such an opportunity. I've always been interested in cephalopods, but it's difficult to study them when you're land-locked in the Midwest. Are you looking for people who have marine science degrees, or people who have degrees in biology, but interest in cephalopods? I fit into the latter category, of course.
IE

Mike, Tintenfisch and I are working REAL HARD to make this happen, soon.

Hopefully within the next 12 months we'll be out there doing it all over again, this time successfully.
Cheers
O

Awesome, and good luck!

Dr. O'Shea,
I must say I'd be very interested in such an opportunity. I've always been interested in cephalopods, but it's difficult to study them when you're land-locked in the Midwest. Are you looking for people who have marine science degrees, or people who have degrees in biology, but interest in cephalopods? I fit into the latter category, of course.
IE

Howdo Kopffuss
Anyone with an interest in cephalopods is welcome, although a biological degree and familiarity with marine invertebrates would certainly help (you). Without this background you'll have to work rather hard, embarking on both a research project AND having to familiarise yourself with the basics of marine invertebrate diversity, morphology, anatomy, biology and ecology. It can be done however.

Sorry it took so long to respond; we've been stretched to capacity here this past week.
Kindest
Steve

If there is anyone out there interested in doing population genetics on endangered squid and octopus species then please sing out. A background in genetics is an absolute must.

Similarly, if anyone was interested in examining toothed whale diet then sing out also.
Kindest
Steve

Since I'm not qualified for any of this, can I just come out and make you guys coffee each day? I'll work cheap! I'll be the office lackey! However, you'll have to put up with me hovering around a lot muttering "COOL!" over your shoulders... :lol:

Matt, I completely agree! Hehehe! We could be the "lab mascots." I'd even dress up for the job. Sigh. Ah well. First to finish my obligations, then maybe I can play with squid. A long time from now. :roll:

rusty

Similarly, if anyone was interested in examining toothed whale diet then sing out also.


is previous stomach sorting experience required? :yuck:

I would love to help and or participate with anything you feel you would need my help. I am here when ever you need me. I have just started back to school with the hope of a degree in marine biology and would do the research just to help get the answers. Let me know if i can be of any help.

Over the next week we'll be working very hard to raise a few additional dollars to sponsor further research (in the form of postgraduate scholarships). If successful I'll post some research ideas online.
Kindest
Steve

We're not always working hard - we do get to play sometimes. Here are a couple of pics from the last trip to Hobart :)

http://www.tonmo.com/phpBB/download.php?id=4095

http://www.tonmo.com/phpBB/download.php?id=4094

http://www.tonmo.com/phpBB/download.php?id=4096

My gosh you two look soooooo serious! I was talking to George on the phone yesterday, he mentioned you were incredibly busy!!!!!

What park was that in I went to one called the Bonarong Wildlife Park when I was there, it was really neat although I did get mugged by the roos and a 10 month old wombat for the tucker!!!

J

I can't remember where we were Jean; we had a couple of entertaining days of R & R, touching wombats, feeding roos, riding horses, renting cars that break down in the middle of nowhere; called through Sydney also and had a jolly good time there - it had been a while since I'd had a break.
Cheers
O

I don't know that you can escape roos in aussie, got mugged by them in Townsville too!

Wasn't silly enough to hire a car though, escpecially not in Queensland, sorry if there are any Queenslanders on the list, but I saw the strangest driving habits there :shock: so I took the................bus!!!!!

J

Indeed it was Bonorong! Home of friendly and not-so- marsupials of all descriptions... Steve was quite enamored of the wallabies (see attached) but didn't like the Tassie devils much. Me, I think they'd make good pets. ;)

http://www.tonmo.com/phpBB/download.php?id=392

http://www.tonmo.com/phpBB/download.php?id=4097

http://www.tonmo.com/phpBB/download.php?id=390

I liked the tassies too, what an attitude!!

They'd be fantastic guard critters & for all you fans (like me) of Taz in the cartoons, the real thing makes much the same noise and moves about as fast when p*&%%&d off which seems to be about 99% of the time!!

J

It sounds like we've just secured a further 20 stomach contents of Kogia (pygmy sperm whale) that go back 'several' years (they've been sitting in someone's freezer); we can add this to the 4 lots I have here already (a nice temporal series).

It looks like I've one student coming aboard to document life histories in Sepioteuthis squid, along with working on their culture. Now I'm looking for that 1-in-a-million person who wants to work on stomach contents of whales ... I haven't secured any funds for this yet, but I am working on it. It would make an ideal MSc research project; it is real sexy science (now why is there no 'sexy science' emoticon?)!

(now why is there no 'sexy science' emoticon?)!

you could just mix :madsci: :beer: and :heart: until you find something that works for you....

Indeed it was Bonorong! Home of friendly and not-so- marsupials of all descriptions... Steve was quite enamored of the wallabies (see attached) but didn't like the Tassie devils much. Me, I think they'd make good pets. ;)

What is it with the rest of the world and our animals? Familiarity breeds contempt! The only Australian animals I would even think of looking at twice would be the lizards. Koalas pee on you at the drop of a hat and male kangaroos flash their private bits whenever they get a chance. Maybe I have just seen the x-rated Australian animals? We have the most dangerous spiders and snakes on the planet - funnel web spiders were common around my old place in Sydney. We had a cat who would catch black and brown snakes and leave them on the back doormat - going to the loo at night was an adventure...

KRin...who is quite happy to live in suburban Melbourne

Steve-

So..... what's this about undergrad degrees in Marine Biology there in NZ? Just out of curiosity, really.

thanks,
Amber

Dr. O'Shea,

I'd love to look through the contents of the Koigia stomachs, probably just a little greenhorn giddiness (is that even a word?) but I doubt you'd be able to keep them for another four years. I will be starting my first year of college in September. Would you be able to give some advice on the direction ceph research is headed. Meaning would it be better to pursue knowledge of genetics or behavior. I think Dr. Roland Anderson has me going for behavior but I'm looking for another opinion. Especially as I would like to work along side you. I'll stop with the brown nosing now.

Michael :meso:

Especially as I would like to work along side you.

Be careful what you wish for. ;)

:oshea:

What is it with the rest of the world and our animals?
Tell me about it! I think a lot of tourists come here and expect to see Koalas in every tree and roos bounding across urban pedestrian crossings (not to mention spiders under every toilet seat :shock: ). Its not quite like that, although in the outback locals try avoid driving at dawn and dusk as collisions with roos are extremely common. A mature roo can do huge damage to a vehicle not to mention killing the animal, which is much more sad. :(

I can't say I've had that many male roos flash their bits at me (maybe they find you more appealing, Krin :lol:) but I once witnessed a mating fight by a couple of mature reds. That was pretty awesome, not to mention scary. Don't forget, we also have deadly fish, jellyfish, and most importantly octopus.

Despite all this hideous danger constantly surrounding us, most of us manage to live pretty ordinary lives. After all, spiders, snakes and marsupials don't carry handguns. :jester:

You DO have some awfully dangerous critters out there...

Interestingly, your roo+car=Bad Things problem is quite common here too, only with deer. Habitat encroachment/elimination and all that...

rusty

A mature roo can do huge damage to a vehicle not to mention killing the animal, which is much more sad. :(


interesting.... of all the people i know that've had deer/car collisions, i think the deer has ran away everytime....even after totaling some of the cars.... :bonk:

i guess they have a lower center of gravity, so they dont go up and over the hood.... kinda like the child/adult/car/SUV thing.....

interesting.... of all the people i know that've had deer/car collisions, i think the deer has ran away everytime....even after totaling some of the cars.... :bonk:

i guess they have a lower center of gravity, so they dont go up and over the hood.... kinda like the child/adult/car/SUV thing.....

I've worked at a wildlife rescue/rehabilitation place before and I've discovered that deer often run away from a totaled car, but they usually die soon afterwards, depending on their injuries.

considering the forces involved, that doesnt surprise me... but the ability to get up from such an impact is still quite impressive

oh i agree, you probably wouldn't see a human manage to get up and run away! :shock:

Oh my, how a thread can go awry ...

Steve-

So..... what's this about undergrad degrees in Marine Biology there in NZ? Just out of curiosity, really.

thanks,
Amber

There's some interesting stuff happening here in NZ, Amber, if you're interested in squid, octopus, systematics, culture/aquaculture, general deep-sea biology and marine invertebrates in general - and we can even throw in a little documentary work if you're so inclined (we're juggling 4 at this point in time ... as in the next couple of months). You should see some interesting squid stuff start hitting the screens early next year .... and beyond.

the thread was totaled when it hit the deer.... which then ran off with the original subject. :P

Dr. O'Shea,

I'd love to look through the contents of the Kogia stomachs, probably just a little greenhorn giddiness (is that even a word?) but I doubt you'd be able to keep them for another four years. I will be starting my first year of college in September. Would you be able to give some advice on the direction ceph research is headed. Meaning would it be better to pursue knowledge of genetics or behavior. I think Dr. Roland Anderson has me going for behavior but I'm looking for another opinion. Especially as I would like to work along side you. I'll stop with the brown nosing now.

Michael :meso:

Michael, this will be an ongoing project (the Kogia/Physeter stomach content analysis), but the work needn't be restricted to New Zealand surveys/stomach-content analysis. Fiheries impacts are occurring on a global scale, and as such the diet of these toothed whales is likely to change, or forced to change throughout their entire recognised distributions.

Ceph research could head in any direction. You just have to determine what you want to do - whether it be biology/life history, behaviour, systematics, culture or conservation (and more). Just ask Tintenfisch what it's like working alongside me ..... you might have second thoughts you know.
Cheers
O

the thread was totaled when it hit the deer.... which then ran off with the original subject. :P

This is all too apparent :mrgreen:

Steve-

So..... what's this about undergrad degrees in Marine Biology there in NZ? Just out of curiosity, really.

thanks,
Amber

There's some interesting stuff happening here in NZ, Amber, if you're interested in squid, octopus, systematics, culture/aquaculture, general deep-sea biology and marine invertebrates in general - and we can even throw in a little documentary work if you're so inclined (we're juggling 4 at this point in time ... as in the next couple of months). You should see some interesting squid stuff start hitting the screens early next year .... and beyond.


Thanks for the reply, Steve
ooooo..... so very tempting. I admit I even did take the time to look at school in the general area. From the sound of it, the happenings in NZ are right up my alley of interest. Well, at any rate, there is no way I would be able to make it to NZ until after the next two semesters at the very least. One can dream. :) I may have a particularly good job in the workings for next summer which could help with travel. I guess I will see what happens.

~Amber

1. I think we Kiwis are enamoured (big word!! Jean just had a Red Bull and is a little high!!) of Aussie animals espec the mammals cos we don't have any native ones of our own (well except for small very cryptic bats and ceph murdering marine mammals :D ) All the other mammals here are introduced (including yours truely!)


2. re research, Steve any chance of a Post Doc :D :D :D :D :D :D

or have you heard of any coming up say next year???????????


J

A mature roo can do huge damage to a vehicle not to mention killing the animal, which is much more sad

Now possums are a different matter - they do little damage and if you can get a minimum of 25 with your Hire Car you get extra points towards your NZ citizenship/residency application

they do little damage and if you can get a minimum of 25 with your Hire Car you get extra points towards your NZ citizenship/residency application
MEAN.... but funny. :wink: We've got a possum in our ceiling space at the moment. They're graceful and agile in the trees, but sound bloody clumsy when they're clambering over rafters directly above your head at three in the morning.

:oops: I'm posting off main thread topic again. Mea maxima culpa. Time for more flagellation.

Quote:
they do little damage and if you can get a minimum of 25 with your Hire Car you get extra points towards your NZ citizenship/residency application
MEAN.... but funny. We've got a possum in our ceiling space at the moment. They're graceful and agile in the trees, but sound bloody clumsy when they're clambering over rafters directly above your head at three in the morning.

Ah yes but it's one thing when the animal is a native, here in NZ possums're Noxious Pests!!! They tend to shred the native trees (& Kiwi's are the ultimate tree huggers!!) and they eat native birds eggs. Besides they compete with the Kea's for roof space :lol: :lol:

J

A bit of an update here (it's been a while).

As of 2004 we'll have 2 x new Masters students working on squid and octopus research; one on the life history of commercial octopus species (rearing those larvae from eggs, reconstructing life histories), the other on a commercial squid species (broad squid, Sepioteuthis, similarly rearing larvae from eggs and reconstructing life histories).

I think we are close to securing funds for the whale diet, squid beak identification work, and we have someone lined up for this also, albeit for a 6-month post-grad diploma piece of contracted research.

Things are ticking along.
Me

Kerry Hewitt (of the National Aquarium of New Zealand, and TONMO member) has just fired me through series of photographs of Sepioteuthis egg masses that they have in one of the acrylic cylinders at their aquarium. When the masses were first transported there this weekend several of the embryos hatched prematurely. Kerry, we hope to be down there soon to come say "Hi" and check out your new (imminent) baby squid.

Kelly Tarlton's Underwater World (a major aquarium in Auckland) has also just collected egg masses of the same species deposited in local waters, so it looks like we'll have live squid to show you in a few weeks. We'll be out in boats again soon enough (early next week), but we've been a tad preoccupied these past few days with stranded whales.

Attached pics of the squid-egg setup (thanks Kerry).

http://www.tonmo.com/phpBB/download.php?id=1299

http://www.tonmo.com/phpBB/download.php?id=1298

http://www.tonmo.com/phpBB/download.php?id=4098

.... and Nick from Kelly Tarlton's Underwater World in Auckland has just collected us this batch of Sepioteuthis eggs from local waters. The other pic is of one of two larval (now juvenile) fish that we caught ~ a month back, still alive and well; problem is we haven't a clue what it is yet .... (I think it is a foetal Megamouth shark :mrgreen: ).

The eggs are 2-3 weeks from hatching (it's only a small batch), but the lads at Kelly's will collect us a ton more, at a cost of a dozen beers a batch; a good deal I say!

http://www.tonmo.com/phpBB/download.php?id=1345

http://www.tonmo.com/phpBB/download.php?id=1344

The NRCC has lots of little sepioteuthis right now. Cute little guys. I know my way around that place by now and just sort of learning as I go about how to keep them and the other cephs alive happy and laying eggs. What kinds of equipment do you have on your egg setup, out of curiosity?

Our equipment list (needs) are pretty basic - I haven't even got UV on that tank; there's just a biofilter and a chiller unit (constant temperature). One of the most important things to keep in mind with the eggs is that you need a jolly good current through the tank, to ensure the eggs get plenty of O2; unfortunately the larvae would not survive long in that turbulence, so you have to remove them from the tank immediately after they hatch (and ensure they go into a tank with a fine, large banjo screen attached to the water intake). Fortunately they tend to do this at two times of the day, morning and evening, so you don't need to be on larval patrol 24 hours/day.

At NRCC are you separating the eggs out into individual strands? I've read of this being done before, but have never had the need to do so myself.

When they hatch you must have an abundant supply of live food, preferably mysid shrimp or fish larvae, 1 to 1.5 times the size of the squid. Anything smaller and they'll reject most, and you'll also experience considerable mortality. Too much food in the tank and the mysids will turn on the squid, so just enough to keep them going on a day-to-day basis.

Steve, have you ever used UV on a larval tank?? I've heard of it being used with larval black foot paua (abalone) with disasterous results! The veliger larvae were very deformed. When the UV was removed the next batch were fine, UV back in=deformed larvae!

J

Cool. Kinda like The Fantastic Four. Only there were probably more than four of 'em, and they don't sound like they turned out too fantastic.

:roll:

At NRCC are you separating the eggs out into individual strands? I've read of this being done before, but have never had the need to do so myself.

When they hatch you must have an abundant supply of live food, preferably mysid shrimp or fish larvae, 1 to 1.5 times the size of the squid. Anything smaller and they'll reject most, and you'll also experience considerable mortality. Too much food in the tank and the mysids will turn on the squid, so just enough to keep them going on a day-to-day basis.

No, I haven't ever seen the eggs of any cephs there separated. Generally, as they appear in the tank, they are moved to a floating basket in the same tank which allows free flow of water through it (but not eggs or hatchlings). As they hatch, one of the college interns (like me!) will put mysids in the basket to tide them over until someone moves them to a separate hatchling tank. Since there are three shifts a day covered by an intern, they do just fine for food.