POST YOUR COLOSSAL SQUID QUESTIONS HERE

[DWhatley]

Originally Posted by dwhatley
I did find that, as the eggs were closer to hatching, only dead food would be accepted

This is very interesting!

That is why I was wondering about the atrophy in the squid tentacles. My original WC merc would eat live if I attached it to a tube and bothered her with it, then she started to refuse and I froze the crabs and offered them dead. Later she started pushing them away but would take dead shrimp directly from my fingers and not the wiggling air line. Her daughter refused the live sooner but would take hand fed shrimp almost daily (both pooped regularly so I know they were actually eating the shrimp).

 

[sorseress]

I'm still not clear on a link between a mature female and tentacle atrophy. Why would a change in diet cause atrophy?

 

[DWhatley]

My question was the other way around, could be atrophy be caused by the change in eating style?

 

[Tintenfisch]

I think the theory is that if the animals stop hunting/using the tentacles, they atrophy. This is also observed in mature males in some species.

 

[sorseress]

Use it or lose it, then.

 

[sorseress]

Is it only in squid that this phenomenon is observed?

 

[Cairnos]

Wild stab in the dark, but how autonomous would thier 'Hey small live thing, grab it and eat it' reflex be? If it's pretty reflexive normally could that be one reason why it seems to go away around the time thier own young may soon be floating around being, well, small live things in arms reach?

 

[sorseress]

Ok, but how would that explain the same thing occurring with males? They aren't brooding. Is it simply related to senescence?

 

[Cairnos]

Ok, but how would that explain the same thing occurring with males? They aren't brooding. Is it simply related to senescence?

Because some of the small live things floating around at about that time may be thier own offspring carrying thier genes?

or perhaps to show solidarity with the females? Some human males wear those false pregnan belly things after all

Ok probably it's senescence but I just thought I'd throw the idea out there (the first one not the second).

 

[DWhatley]

Wild stab in the dark, but how autonomous would thier 'Hey small live thing, grab it and eat it' reflex be? If it's pretty reflexive normally could that be one reason why it seems to go away around the time thier own young may soon be floating around being, well, small live things in arms reach?

I have thought about that too but, at least with the Mercs (others have reported similar observations with other octos though), the adults did not eat anything that small.

 

[sorseress]

I can think of a whole lot of better ways for human males to show solidarity with females.

I seriously doubt that male squid would even recognize the female he fertilized, let alone care.

 

[Cairnos]

I have about that too but, at least with the Mercs (others have reported similar observations with other octos though), the adults did not eat anything that small.

Curses, another theory broken on the rocks of observations of reality. Darn the scientific method I say, Darn it to heck!

 

[sorseress]

Curses, another theory broken on the rocks of observations of reality. Darn the scientific method I say, Darn it to heck!

It ruins all the fun doesn't it? Wild speculation is much more enjoyable?

 

[DWhatley]

Curses, another theory broken on the rocks of observations of reality. Darn the scientific method I say, Darn it to heck!

The observation may not hold true at all for squid

 

[gholland]

I have about that too but, at least with the Mercs (others have reported similar observations with other octos though), the adults did not eat anything that small.

Hunh?!?! Adult mercs (or other octos) won't eat something the size of mysids or gammarus? Hmmm... now that I think about it, I don't remember ever trying to feed them anything that small on purpose. I do know the gammarus population has been decimated though!