I have a question about the channel and ligula in young male octopuses and why males are not identifiable from birth. I could see where the ligula might grow with maturity but how would the channel not be there from birth?
It would be, but it would be very small. There are a few knobs and papillae on the surface of the visceral mass of a juvenile that could easily be mistaken for a (cough) boy bit in a juvenile, and sometimes differentiating these from female genital structures is difficult in a juvenile. But it can be done with a lot of experience, and an ontogenetic series of specimens to help identify where the structures will be at any given size.dwhatley;143653 said:...and they could not tell from the preserved juveniles so it made me curious as to why this one feature would not be always present.