CHALLENGE

Tintenfisch

Architeuthis
Staff member
Moderator (Staff)
Joined
Nov 19, 2002
Messages
2,107
OK, guys, you asked for it. Here's pic #1 of the Amazing GS Discovery. We challenge you to figure out...

:arrow: What this is, and
:arrow: Why it's significant

Go for it!
 

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Re: yuk

krin said:
NO, NO, a million times NO! :evil:
That man is a complete nutter and I claim no repsonsibility for him.
It was just an accident of birth to be born in the same country as him.
I've never even seen a crocodile let alone poked one with a stick. I'm not that crazy.

I actually really am a librarian, honest. I work at the Cancer Council in Melbourne, Victoria.

KRin

Hiya krin -- please don't take my silliness to heart! I am one of the incorrigible class clowns of this community, and sometimes I forget that not everyone here is familiar with my twisted but well-meaning sense of humor.

In fact, as far as I'm concerned, you are working on the side of the angels. My Dad and some of my other relatives unfortunately lost their lives to cancer, and anyone who does his or her part to help research and/or care in that field is a hero to me.

As for the Croc Hunter, he's actually my second-favorite Crazy Antipodean Nature Guy Named Steve -- my favorite being our own Doc O'Shea! We recently upgraded our cable system and can now watch the Animal Planet channel, so I get at least two healthy doses of the Irwins per week, as well as other cool naturalists such as Jeff Corwin and Mark O'Shea (no relation, I assume).

I'm still waiting for Steve and Kat's big revelation.... just hope, after all that, that it doesn't turn out to be something he left in the refrigerator last year and is now starting to grow antennae and green fuzz!

Squidly salutations,
Tani
 
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just hope, after all that, that it doesn't turn out to be something he left in the refrigerator last year and is now starting to grow antennae and green fuzz!

Reminds me of the classic Monty Python's Flying Circus episode where Graham Chapman, as police officer, turns to the camera holding a bag with an egg salad sandwich inside (which he originally thought was a bag of drugs which he tried to plant on Eric Idle), and says, "Blimey! What ever did I leave the wife?"
 
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Re: yuk

TaningiaDanae said:
....as other cool naturalists such as Jeff Corwin and Mark O'Shea (no relation, I assume).

I'm still waiting for Steve and Kat's big revelation.... just hope, after all that, that it doesn't turn out to be something he left in the refrigerator last year and is now starting to grow antennae and green fuzz!

Tani

No relation there Tani (though I've received some entertaining mail over the years where I've been mistaken for Mark). Hey, I did some work (behind the scenes, late last year) for a new Jeff Corwin doco; I believe he was looking for the giant squid (in a light-hearted sort of way). Has this aired in the US yet? I believe it is was to air just after christmas ... but I could be wrong (I'd be interested to hear what people thought of it, should it have aired already); a copy should be en route to me.

We can assure you that the greeblies Kat presently is illustrating are more interesting than the contents of my fridge/freezer. A more detailed story isn't too far away now; we're back online and have microscopes and facilities lined up.
Cheers
Me
 
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Hello everyone!

Back from my self-imposed exile due to computer death (and with a new hard drive thanks to Western Digital's warranty program).

Thanks for keeping posted on the big news... I look forward to new revelations.

On a sad note, I assisted in the autopsy of a dead baby whale two days ago. Yeah, yeah, I know that biologists refer to a post-mortem of anything non-human as a "necropsy", but I don't care. It was a stillborn Eschrictius (Gray Whale) calf... It was interesting, gave my wife some mammalogy class credit, and was worth the drive to the south jetty. But I was saddened... Its just a hell of a way to die after such a long pregnancy and such. Well, no squid here, but does anyone besides me ever get kinda choked up about these things? I'd make a terrible researcher... I get attached.

*sigh* Well, keep posting! And the Croc Hunter rules! I would give my left hectocotyl to a Dasyurid for a mammalogical tour of New Zealand and Australia! Oh, and if anyone sees a Thylacine, catch one for me, okay?

Sushi, Sake, and Donburi

John
 
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Re: yuk

Steve O'Shea said:
No relation there Tani (though I've received some entertaining mail over the years where I've been mistaken for Mark). Hey, I did some work (behind the scenes, late last year) for a new Jeff Corwin doco; I believe he was looking for the giant squid (in a light-hearted sort of way). Has this aired in the US yet? I believe it is was to air just after christmas ... but I could be wrong (I'd be interested to hear what people thought of it, should it have aired already); a copy should be en route to me.

We can assure you that the greeblies Kat presently is illustrating are more interesting than the contents of my fridge/freezer. A more detailed story isn't too far away now; we're back online and have microscopes and facilities lined up.
Cheers
Me

LOL -- I'd love to see some of that misdelivered mail! I've just had an individual message exchange with Colin where we both agreed how "vanilla" Mark-O' is compared to you, Corwin, and the Irwins.

We just started getting Animal Planet here in mid-January, so unfortunately we missed a lot of the new 2003 specials (including THE FUTURE IS WILD, which I am praying they will air again soon). I saw a few JEFF CORWIN EXPERIENCE episodes, including one in the Amazon rain forest, one in Tasmania, and one on the Oz mainland. I don't recall any mention of Archis in the latter two, so I assume -- or hope -- the one in which you participated will be shown again. What was its title and/or theme?

If you check the threads on the PHYSIOLOGY AND BIOLOGY forum here, you'll see a topic entitled Humboldt "vocalizations"? This was my query re an ULTIMATE ANIMALS episode I saw (starring yet another naturalist name Steve, whose surname I don't recall). Last time I checked nobody replied to it, so if you get a chance, I'd like to hear your take on the subject (it was pretty weird).

What are "greeblies" anyway? Sounds like something my Grandma would've put in her homemade giblet gravy, except she would've used Chicken Greeblies 'cause I don't think Archis are kosher.... :biggrin2:

BTW, best of luck in your new venue! With what organization are you and Kat doing your research now?

G'day to you, Shoba, TTF and the Duxies,
Tani
 
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Fujisawas Sake said:
On a sad note, I assisted in the autopsy of a dead baby whale two days ago. Yeah, yeah, I know that biologists refer to a post-mortem of anything non-human as a "necropsy", but I don't care. It was a stillborn Eschrictius (Gray Whale) calf... It was interesting, gave my wife some mammalogy class credit, and was worth the drive to the south jetty. But I was saddened... Its just a hell of a way to die after such a long pregnancy and such. Well, no squid here, but does anyone besides me ever get kinda choked up about these things? I'd make a terrible researcher... I get attached.

*sigh* Well, keep posting! And the Croc Hunter rules! I would give my left hectocotyl to a Dasyurid for a mammalogical tour of New Zealand and Australia! Oh, and if anyone sees a Thylacine, catch one for me, okay?

Sushi, Sake, and Donburi

John

Konichiwa John,

The rest of the community will probably pillory me for this, but yes, I love cetaceans too. In the books I recently read by Eugene Linden (one of which I will soon be reviewing for TONMO), there is a moving account of a mated pair of captive orcas, who were profoundly attached to each other. Eventually the female became pregnant and they both appeared to be very happy (as were the zookeepers). In the manner of many cetaceans, the male would routinely "sonograph" his mate's belly with his natural sonar to determine the condition of the fetus. (There is anecdotal evidence that dolphins and orcas often "sonograph" pregnant female trainers in the water too, showing intense interest in them, occasionally before the women are aware of their own pregnancies!)

One day, after the male orca performed his regular sonar check of his mate, he became severely agitated and started banging his head against the side of the tank, in a display that could only be interpreted as frustration and despair. Shortly thereafter, the female orca gave birth to a stillborn calf. There is no question in my mind that the male orca knew that his mate was carrying a baby, knew that the baby was his, and knew that it was no longer alive. I would challenge anyone in the scientific field to disprove that these beautiful mammals are just as capable of grieving as ourselves.

On a happier note: Steve Irwin is a major cutie -- in fact, I am just a tad bit jealous of Terri! :oops: His combination of archetypal Aussie charm, maniacal devotion to his career, and contagious enthusiasm about everything, makes his show a definite "upper". And you get the feeling that he's equally enthusiastic about the people in his life -- though it was a little disconcerting when he was showing off his newborn daughter Bindi to the zoo staff and said, "Isn't she a little beauty?" and you realize he's used the exact same phrase to describe snakes, scorpions, crocodiles, and goannas....!

In a similar manner, you can see that S.I. is genuinely upset when he sees wildlife injured by human destruction of the environment -- as when he was almost reduced to tears by the sight of burned and dying small animals due to a deliberately-set bush fire. His compassion extends to humans too -- on his expedition to a war-torn Indonesian island, he presented a local priest with a substantial donation from Australia Zoo, to aid the families displaced by the destruction of their homes and crops.

So yeah, I am definitely a Croc Hunter fan too! (BTW, what as Dasyurids and Thylacines?)

Plum wine, shrimp tempura, and green tea ice cream,
Tani-san
 
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Tani-San,

Dasyuridae is the family of Marsupial "Cats", or carnivorous Maruspials that include the Tasmanian Devil. The Thylacine was one known as the Tasmanian Wolf or Tiger, and was a beautiful marsupial carnivore. It was also considered a pest by ranchers and met its end in 1913. But the rumors... ah, the rumors... The rumors are that they may still live deep in the forests of Australia and New Zealand. Might be codswallop, but I like to dream...

As far has Humboldt "vocalizations", I have my issues with that... I've had a crack at a dead Dosidicus (Humboldt Squid) here at Humboldt State University... Just how do they figure that these things vocalize? I'm confused.

The Future is Wild is interesting, but the book is better... I have a bit of a thread going on the site "Malacology: H.G. Wells Style".... Drop by and see it if you like.

Sushi and Pocky

John
 
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Hiya John; the old Tasmanian Devil isn't found down here in NZ I'm afraid - just in Aus (Tasmania).

Vanilla O :wink:
 
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Crickey! I write miserably after a large meal and some mead...

Sorry, I meant that the the Tasmanian Tiger was brought to New Zealand as part of a conservation program. Too little, too late, I'm afraid. As far as the Tas. Devil. yeah, its strictly Aussie.

Amazing stuff you found in the Archis... Have they all been dissected?

Sushi, Sake, and some Valentine's Day Lasagna (?)

John
 
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Re: yuk

TaningiaDanae said:
With what organization are you and Kat doing your research now?

We're now with Auckland University of Technology (AUT) in - you guessed it - Orkland, New Zealand. And we might even have our own office by next week... :shock: we've been trying to make our temporary spaces as fragrant as possible (not hard with preserved squid and dead whale stomachs) to give the admin a little incentive :wink: to give us some space quick.
 
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'Me thinks' this thread once had something to do with Architeuthis stomach contents! Guess you all got bored with the waiting eh :roll:

By process of elimination we are confirming the identifications of prey items; we've found a few errors in the existing literature that had we uncritically accepted it (the literature) we'd have done little more than perpetuated them (the errors), got our species identifications wrong, and lead you wrong too.....and we don't want this :grad: . Moreover, a few of the bits and pieces contained within the stomach caecum, usually fragmentary, are not well reported in standard descriptions of cephalopods, so we've had to procure and examine appropriate reference specimens for comparison (the bulk of my collection remains where I used to work :frown: ).

More soon, promise
Us
 
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rrtanton said:
Never before have I heard such deliciously evil and appropriate extortion! :twisted: Way to go Tani!

rusty

:lol: As twisted and evil as I am, I would like to take credit for that olfactory extortion, but in fact it was Steve-O' and Tintenfisch (Kat) who concocted the scheme. Alas, I am not a Kiwi teuthologist, just a Brooklynese were-squid.

:squid:
GO BROOKLYN! YAAAAY!
 
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Oh, right...oops! :oops: For some reason I keep blending the names Tani and Tintenfisch.

Were-squid, eh? hmmmmmm. Is that catching? 'cause if it is, you might have a few dozen Tonmoers knocking on your door tomorrow looking to borrow some germs... :P

Of course...given Steve-O's discoveries...maybe that's not such a good idea... :shock:

rusty
 
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