The SQUID, Ego, and Superego....

Armstrong,

Thanks for the reply. From my reading, cephs have built upon the basic molluscan neural network: That is, an anterior circumenteric ganglia and paired ventral nerve cords, with a few neat little twists here and there...

Its analogous, perhaps even homologous, to the ladder-like nervous system of the platyhelminthes (flatworms). It doesn't surprise me that you couldn't find a "brain" per se in the squid... Its as distinct from the chordate brain as you can get.

What I was wondering is how intelligent they are, and how they learn and retain information given that their "brains" aren't really brains. There is a serious evolutionary need for intelligence here, given the ceph design, but the neural mapping and how it affects behavior is what has me confused...

Any thoughts? If anyone has a pet Octo or Squid, have you noticed anything interesting about their behavior?

Sushi and Sake,

John
 
I think there's been some discussion here of ceph insanity, mostly stress-related (e.g. self-mutilation, chewing/ingestion of own arms, self-mating in males) but possibly also in a situation where there's zero interactive stimulus?
In any case, I recently met an octo who lived in a very, very bare tank, and boy did she go nuts when you opened the lid. She latched on, and clung, to anything non-tank within reach (including all six human arms attempting to put her back in), blew jets of water, tried to get out... all of which was fun for me but seemed indicative that she definitely needed more to do during the (vast majority of) time when no one was around to 'play' with.
 
Fascinating topic! I love hearing the stories of them outsmarting humans! Colin, the cuttlefish and the socket!!! How did you stop that behavior??? I am ordering the book, Cephlopod Behavior! Their intellegence is what has always intrigued me!

Carol
 
Tintenfisch,

See? That's what I was wondering... The more complex the brain, the more chance of having a "mind" (and yes, the more chance of losing it). :lol:

Wow... Sounds like quite a story... Maybe I should get into cephalopod psychology. I could develop terms like "hectocotylic symbolism", and "hectocotylus envy".... :lol:

Sushi and Sake (the good unfiltered Hakusan)

John
 
Tell you what, Fuji, I'm looking at becoming a proud octoparent within the next several months, so you should come to NZ and do a comparative psych study on octos in captivity - the one I mentioned before, in the bare tank, versus mine, which will probably be subject to more interaction than it knows what to do with, and get very fat besides...
(Me: Come on, I know you want another shrimp, even if you already had 43 today, just take it from my fingers one last time before I get back to work...
Octo: I'm so full I can't move... and stop staring at me...
Me: Five more mintues and I'll get back to my dissertation...
Octo: I'm crawling out the window tonight, I don't care if this IS the seventh floor!)
 
Heh heh... Good idea, but my wife is finishing up her degree in wildlife right now in California. As far as I go, I am going back to school to study marine biology (I was a zoology major, and have taken so many animal classes that scientific names have been burned directly into my brain).

*sigh* I'm not sure I miss school. Sometimes it was more depressing than anything (an invert zoology instructor I met was brilliant, but burned-out). I take learning personally, and if I'm not having fun, I don't learn as well... Math and science can be a real kick if you really let yourself have fun.

New Zealand.. wow... I would love to take a zoological tour of Australia and New Zealand. So many animals, so little time...

Sushi and Sake,

John
 

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