Forget that goofy crocoduck. I want a cephalogull.
Actually, this isn’t an octopus growing bird wings. I have a whole series of violent photos of the event — it’s a very cunning octopus that oozed up to the Ogden Point breakwater in Victoria, BC, reached up silently with it’s suckered arms, and dragged a seagull down to a watery doom, and a tasty fowl dinner. If you were eating nothing but crab every day you might want to try something different too.
(Also on Sb)
fastlane says
Your ‘also on SB’ link points back to here. You need a better code monkey. =P
quoderatdemonstrandum says
what a relief! For a minute there I thought the seagull was eating the octopus.
Of course that was a silly thought, brilliant cephalopods are way too smart for stupid birds.
PZ Myers says
Nope, I need slower readers. I post to both sites with a blank url, get the address from each, and update the two posts. If you click within a minute of me posting the crossposted articles, you’ll catch them before the update.
kevinalexander says
What species is that?
Gullophagous sniiki?
Glen Davidson says
Anti-flyday.
Glen Davidson
chigau (違う) says
I would like to see the series of violent photos.
Dhorvath, OM says
I, ah, have spent time at Ogden point and nearby, it being in my backyard so to speak. Now I am doubly sure that I won’t be swimming off the island anytime soon.
consciousness razor says
Maybe it should try the calamari next time. That’s probably much tastier than seagull.
FilthyHuman says
How nice for that octopus to fatten itself up so it will be nice and juicy on my dinner plate.
FilthyHuman says
A bit of a derail.
Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, rebuffed suggestions by a top House Republican that American generals were not being truthful about Pentagon spending needs.
You know, I’m not sure what to think here. Other then you know your budget is completely out of whack when even the Pentagon is saying “Um… we really, REALLY don’t need this much money. Go use it somewhere else important.”
lexie says
I don’t think cephalogulls would look as good on a tie
Katherine Lorraine, Chaton de la Mort says
@Filthy Human:
Post derails on TET! There are no derails there :D Plus we’re all friendly!
FilthyHuman says
@Katherine
#12
That the “Episode *some large roman numeral” threads?
mjmiller says
It Came From Beneath the Sea!
grantcomeau says
“I have a whole series of violent photos of the event ”
Stop teasing.
'Tis Himself, OM says
Why am I not surprised that PZ has gull snuff porn.
alexandradeufel says
Love the “oozed up”! Beautifully descriptive :)
cag says
Tastes like chicken.
wmdon says
Yay! I feel special!
(I sent PZ the photos.)
roggg says
I dont see a whole series of violent photos. Would like to see a whole series of violent photos…
chigau (違う) says
wmdon
You are special!! Yes, you are!!
-now post the photos somewhere :) (please)
patrickgranvold says
Joining the chorus requesting violent photo series!
TonyJ says
Awesome. I hate birds. I’ve never had an octopus crap on my car right after I washed and waxed it.
A. R says
Is there nothing that they cannot do? Fear them! Mammals are next!
cultureclash says
Hey when you think about it what you have here is an octopus eating a dinosaur…
Which is even cooler.
Also want to see the rest of the violent photos and also to stop thinking that they should be photos of violence and not violent photos which sound like the monster book of monsters… But I can’t see that happening any time soon.
The Sailor says
@ Katherine “Plus we’re all friendly!”
I’m not! [/Python]
+++++++++++++++
I’m a little surprised the octopus was so obvious, I would have thought he would have lured the seagull in by a more devious method.
And “tastes like chicken” FTW!
WithinThisMind says
And my first thought was ‘what CR do you suppose it would be?’
ironflange says
Gee, that’s awful, Victoria has so few seagulls to spare.
SallyStrange: bottom-feeding, work-shy peasant says
VIOLENT PHOTOS! VIOLENT PHOTOS!
Markita Lynda—it's Spring after the Winter that wasn't says
Those look like pigeon wings. Maybe it’s a juvenile gull?
Menyambal -- damned dirty ape says
Yeah, I thought the wings look like pigeon, too. Both in shape and color.
The Sailor says
Markita Lynda, the juvenile delinquent just gulled you into believing that.
chigau (違う) says
See. That’s why we need a series of
violentphotos.For identification purposes.
For Science!
Menyambal -- damned dirty ape says
After a bit of rooting around the ‘Net, I’ll now say the wings look like a gull, rather than a pigeon. But, as Markita Lynda says, probably a juvenile.
I could find no images that weren’t copied from here, but found an old newspaper account of someone watching an octopus catching a gull.
Oleander Tea, Keeper of A Little Knowledge says
First Otto the Octopus juggling hermit crabs and now this unnamed-by-humans octopus getting supper by stealth. I’m starting to really be impressed with those sea beasties.
I’m also re-thinking my snorkeling hobby. Today small birds, tomorrow tall girls.
jahigginbotham says
is this the series of pictures?
brix1234 says
The octopus is cool! Do you have a video of the octopus catching the bird? I didn’t know that they can do that! They rock! :)
“Brix” for pot catalytique