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Monday, April 18, 2011

8 Legged Entertainment

This is, by far, one of the most interesting sites I've seen in my search for everything octopus: It's Tako, the chef! "Deep Fried Live!", Tako's cooking show, claims to be the world's only cooking show hosted by an appetizer. Check out the video below to see what they mean...



"Deep Fried Live! is the ultimate culinary spectacle, offering cooking tips, in depoth food science, recipes, and links to the latest cookware & ingredients. It's also a thorough exploration of how much damage one octopus can do with an unlimited supply of kitchen artillery.

More cooking lessons, videos, and octoriffic goodness available at TakoTheOctopus.com and 8Legged.com

Sunday, April 17, 2011

Octopus Light Switch Cover

Etsy.com seller, WoodenDoll has a beautiful shop filled with lots of affordable ways to spruce up your interior - octopus-styyyle! Check out this bright and beautiful octopus light switch cover that sells for only $10. Lots of other great art and light switch covers available as well. Enjoy!


Product Description

Octo Plasmic Light Switch Art Cover. Colorful and fun light switchplate covers that bring a room alive. These fun and eye catching switch plate covers are bursting with art!

Art Covers are made from my designs and carefully applied to the plastic cover using deco podge and then sealed for protection. Measurements: 3.25" x 5" oversized.

Friday, April 15, 2011

Noise in Oceans Leads to "Severe Acoustic Trauma" in Octopus, Squid

Jeremy Hance
mongabay.com
April 12, 2011

Researchers have documented for years how noise pollution impacts dolphins in whales, but a new study in Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment finds that even low intensity noise can severely injure cephalopods, which include octopus, squid, and cuttlefish. The injuries are bad enough to possibly lead to stranding and death, thereby providing a feasible explanation for a number of recent strandings, including giant squid washing ashore in Spain.

"This is the first study indicating a severe impact on invertebrates, an extended group of marine species that are not known to rely on sound for living," says Michel André, Technical University of Catalonia in Barcelona, in a press release.

Researchers subjected four species of cephalopods—European squid (Loligo vulgaris), common cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis), common octopus (Octopus vulgaris), and Southern shortfin squid (Illex coindeti)—to low intensity and low frequency sounds (between 50 and 400 Hertz) for two hours. Following the noise exposure, researchers found damage to species' statocysts, which are sensory organs that balance the cephalopods. Inside the statocysts hair cells had ruptured, nerve fibers had swelled, and some statocysts even suffered lesions. These holes continued to grow larger hours after exposure.

The European octopus, and other cephalopods, are more sensitive to even low-frequency sounds than researchers expected. Photo by: Gewöhnlicher Krake. “We expected some lesions after noise exposure but not the level of trauma that we found. What we found was typical of what you might find in mammals after violent, high intensity sound exposure,” André told The Great Beyond.

Given the low intensity of the sounds used in the experiment, researchers believe the 'louder' sounds encountered in the ocean would significantly impair squids, octopi, and cuttlefish.

"The impact of continuous, high intensity noise pollution in the oceans could be considerable. For example, we can predict that, since the statocyst is responsible for balance and spatial orientation, noise-induced damage to this structure would likely affect the cephalopod's ability to hunt, evade predators and even reproduce; in other words, this would not be compatible with life," André explains.

Underwater noise pollution is caused by offshore drilling—and other excavation activities that use seismic surveys to locate deposits—cargo transportation, industrial fishing, and even recreational boating. Studies have shown that some marine animals actually become louder to be heard when confronted with deafening sounds in their environment.

"It left us with several questions," André says, "is noise pollution capable of impacting the entire web of ocean life? What other effects is noise having on marine life, beyond damage to auditory reception systems? And just how widespread and invasive is sound pollution in the marine environment?"

Thursday, April 14, 2011

And The Winner Is...

As generated by Random.org...

#17 - ALYSSA!!!

Alyssa contributed some of her very own art, which you can see below. Very cool!








Thank you sooo much to everyone who contributed their fabulous finds! Expect to see many of your links featured in upcoming posts. Stay tuned as we continue to explore and celebrate everything octopus!

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Everything Octopus: Cephalo-link Contest!

Everything Octopus readers are a fun and creative bunch! I'm constantly amazed at the awesome emails I get from readers letting me know about all sorts of octopus goodies so that I may share them on the blog. I thought it would neat to let EVERYONE contribute and to say thank you for your contribution and readership, by awarding a FREE prize to one lucky contestant.

And by "prize" I mean "PRIZE"! Behold the beautiful blue octopus vintage book page art print from Etsy.com seller, DreameryStudio. Absolutely FREE to the winner!

This one-of-a-kind octopus print (sans frame) can be yours, all yours!


To Enter...

1) You must be a Follower of Everything Octopus. If you're not already a Follower, go to the right hand side of the page and click "Follow" under the "Follow the Octopus" headline. You'll automatically get Everything Octopus updates and be part of a wild n' zany ceph-loving community!

2) Comment on this post with a link to anything and everything octopus related that you think other readers may want to know about. You can post a link to your favorite news article, artwork, something available for purchase, a video, book, an octopus picture you snapped, absolutely anything!

Each comment containing your cephalo-link will count as an entry. YOU CAN ENTER AS MANY TIMES AS YOU WANT.

***Be sure to include your email address so that we may contact you and tell you you've WON! If your email is not included in your blogger profile (meaning that we can click on your name in the comment box to access it), then please add it to your comment.***

The winner will be selected by a raffle, meaning that if there are 100 coments, we'll randomly draw a number between 1 and 100, and the commenter that corresponds with that number is the winner.

The contest will run through Wednesday, April 13th, and the winner will be announced on Thursday, April 14th.

Please feel free to share this contest with all the octofiends you know. I truly look forward to all your cephalo-links - the more, the merrier! Have fun and good luck!
http://www.totallyfreestuff.com/linkin.asp?ID=40899

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Thomas Paul Octopus Throw

I thought I'd post this just for fun...just in case you ever wondered what it would be like to curl up on the sofa with $350 worth of octopus wrapped around you. Behold: The Thomas Paul octopus throw!

Available at PillowsAndThrows.com for $350


Product Description
This modern throw by Thomas Paul is best described as both scandalously stylish and wonderfully warm. It is a great item to add a pop of color to a room and to keep you warm on chilly nights.

This throw is hand-loomed in Peru of 100% baby alpaca and measures 50 x 70. Colors are reversed in back.

A while back, we featured the Thomas Paul Octopus shawl - another luxurious octo-hit!

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Be sure to stop by Everything Octopus tomorrow as we unveil our latest contest! See what you can win and how you can get your tentacles on the prize!

Monday, April 4, 2011

New Giant Pacific Octopus joins Aquarium of the Bay

SFExaminer.com
March 28, 2011

A Giant Pacific Octopus will be getting its tentacles wet as the newest addition to an aquarium in San Francisco, officials said.

The Aquarium of the Bay welcomed the octopus Thursday after purchasing it from a local crab fisherman, according to the aquarium.

Giant Pacific Octopuses crave crabs and den-like enclosures, and often mistake crabbers’ nets as hunting and hiding ground, where they are unintentionally caught, aquarium officials said.

If the octopus kills and eats the crabber’s catch, many fishermen retaliate by killing the octopus, according to the aquarium.

Aquarium of the Bay tries to change this behavior by working with fishermen and purchasing octopuses for exhibit.

The aquarium said it advertises this financial opportunity by posting fliers around local piers and tackle stores.

The newest inhabitant to the aquarium, a true testament to its name, weighs over 80 pounds and joins three other Giant Pacific Octopuses in the aquarium’s near-shore tunnel exhibit, officials said.

Giant Pacific Octopuses are professionals at the art of disguise and can change color within a fraction of a second, by stretching or squeezing their skin, according to the aquarium. Their typical lifespan is about five years.

“Aquarium of the Bay is always happy to provide a safe haven for octopuses that would otherwise meet a hasty demise,” Christina J. Slager, the aquarium’s director of husbandry, said in a news release.

The aquarium is a nonprofit marine life center, dedicated to cultivating the conservation of the San Francisco Bay and its watershed.

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Stay tuned for details on the latest Everything Octopus contest and how you can win!

Friday, April 1, 2011

Tell Your Manicurist You Want Octopus Nails!

The hottest fashion statement you can make this Spring season - Octopus Nails! I took to the web to find the most stylin' and tentacular nails out there. Get inspired and get paintin' your own lovely set of octopus nails.

This set was done for an "Under-the-Sea" themed nail art competition. I'd say these are a "Perfect 10"! Visit NailArtAndNiftyThings.Tumblr.com to congratulate this octo-artist on a job well done.

Bold and blue octopus nails from Cephalolove.tumblr.com. I love his big eye on her thumb!

Painting ain't yer thang? Then check out these awesome octopus nail decals from BigRubyTattoos.com. Only $12 for a set of 86 tattoos including octopuses, starfish, sharks, whales, and more.

To find out how you can create your very own fun and flirty octopus nails, check out AlwaysLookCute.Blogspot.com

Take it to the next level with this gorgeous set of handmade acrylic octopus nails. What's great about these is that they're reusable, so you really get your money's worth. $16.50 for a set of 12-14 at Etsy.com/Aya1gou

Pssst...come back next week for an Everything Octopus contest and find out how you can win an octorrific prize!