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Octopus sex is more complex than you'd think
San Francisco Chronicle ^ | 4/17/8 | Patricia Yollin

Posted on 04/17/2008 8:00:14 AM PDT by SmithL

Octopus sex is simple, dull and quick - at least that's what scientists used to think. Instead, it turns out to be complex, sophisticated and rife with petty rivalries.

In the most detailed research ever conducted on this topic in the wild, UC Berkeley biologists focused on the mating behavior of the Abdopus aculeatus, one of more than 300 species of octopus. They were stunned at what they learned.

"The main surprise was the fact we had this idea that they were completely solitary, with interactions few and far between," said Christine Huffard, lead author on a study recently published in Marine Biology, a science journal. "But they interacted so much more than we ever expected."

She discovered that the males were very picky and discriminating, that the females would have sex with just about anybody, and that male competition for females tended to be violent and frequent.

(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...


TOPICS: Pets/Animals
KEYWORDS: octopus
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To: SmithL
Bigger is better

The researchers also observed males selecting their mates.

“Males prefer large females,” Caldwell said. “If you're going to invest in guarding, you want to get the most bang for your buck.”

The large females were preferred because they produced more eggs.

“It was very common to have a very large male next to a large female,” Huffard said. “He could give her his sperm without leaving his den, and she didn't leave hers. Nobody has to give up their apartment.”

There are a few jokes in there.

21 posted on 04/17/2008 9:09:43 AM PDT by maggief
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To: SmithL

I do my best to never think about octopus sex.


22 posted on 04/17/2008 9:15:08 AM PDT by Phlap (REDNECK@LIBARTS.EDU)
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To: rednesss
Anything out on porcupine sex yet????

It's like a Kennedy family reunion: full of numerous and insufferable pricks.

23 posted on 04/17/2008 9:16:16 AM PDT by andy58-in-nh (Kill the terrorists, secure the borders, and give me back my freedom.)
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To: andy58-in-nh

Or a DNC rally.


24 posted on 04/17/2008 9:30:33 AM PDT by rednesss (Fred Thompson - 2008)
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To: Slings and Arrows

Not only that! But the male leaves behind a waxy secretion that forms a “vaginal plug” ensuring that the next male (if there is one) is going to have an even harder time trying to mate.


25 posted on 04/17/2008 9:31:03 AM PDT by allmendream (Life begins at the moment of contraception. ;))
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To: Yo-Yo

That movie poster always cracked me up.
Looks like his legs are two and a half times the length of his torso.


26 posted on 04/17/2008 9:40:50 AM PDT by RandallFlagg (Satisfaction was my sin)
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To: Paul Heinzman
Octopus sex is more complex than you'd think

The honest truth is, that until this very moment, octopus sex is something that I have NEVER thought about, let alone whether or not it is or is not "complex".

Who writes these headlines?

27 posted on 04/17/2008 9:43:51 AM PDT by LibertarianLiz
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To: LibertarianLiz
Who writes these headlines?

Weirdos...obviously.
28 posted on 04/17/2008 9:45:20 AM PDT by ZX12R
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To: Slings and Arrows
From your link:
Male porcupines may give vent to the occasional scream as well, but it's from frustration, not pain: the female is only sexually receptive 8-12 hours per year.
Wow, the things that you learn on the internet -- I had never realized that my ex was a porcupine.
29 posted on 04/17/2008 9:54:33 AM PDT by Bob
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To: SeaDragon

The things you can learn here at FR. :-)


30 posted on 04/17/2008 10:06:44 AM PDT by RikaStrom (The number one rule of the Kama Sutra is that you both be on the same page.../Exeter 051705)
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To: SmithL; MotleyGirl70; Cagey; Mr. Brightside; jdm; Gamecock; F15Eagle
"lead author on a study recently published in Marine Biology"


31 posted on 04/17/2008 10:09:50 AM PDT by Larry Lucido
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To: SmithL

Octopuses are believed to have roughly the same level of intelligence as a cat, which is quite extraordinary considering they are 200-300 million years older as a species. They have both short- and long-term memory, they learn by observation and they have remarkable problem-solving capability as well as the ability to distinguish between complex patterns and shapes. These are all characteristics which are usually only attributed to higher-order mammals. Octopuses are anything but ‘simple’.

Sorry for going off on a track here, a bit of a ‘geek’ on this.


32 posted on 04/17/2008 10:32:46 AM PDT by SwedishConservative
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To: allmendream; Bob
But the male leaves behind a waxy secretion that forms a “vaginal plug”...

Male porcupines may give vent to the occasional scream as well, but it's from frustration, not pain: the female is only sexually receptive 8-12 hours per year...

There has to be an Eliot Spitzer joke in there somewhere.

33 posted on 04/17/2008 10:54:45 AM PDT by Slings and Arrows ("Code Pink should guard against creating stereotypes in the Mincing Community." --Titan Magroyne)
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To: Larry Lucido; MotleyGirl70; Cagey; Gamecock; Rb ver. 2.0

Male Octopus: You faked with me?

Female Octopus: I faked it.

Male Octopus: That whole thing, the whole production, it was all an act?

Female Octopus: Not bad huh?

Male Octopus: What about the breathing, the panting, the moaning, the screaming?

Female Octopus: Fake, fake, fake, fake.


34 posted on 04/17/2008 11:54:28 AM PDT by Mr. Brightside
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To: Slings and Arrows
I now know more about the sex lives of Octpii then I ever dreamed possible. Can't wait to bring it up at the next office party.
35 posted on 04/17/2008 2:58:12 PM PDT by Harmless Teddy Bear (A good marriage is like a casserole, only those responsible for it really know what goes into it.)
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To: Slings and Arrows; SmithL; Larry Lucido
All this talk of sex ... I have to take a shower ...


36 posted on 04/17/2008 3:36:18 PM PDT by Daffynition (The quieter you become, the more you are able to hear.)
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To: Daffynition

Only six arms?

That would make it a sextipus.


37 posted on 04/17/2008 3:47:17 PM PDT by SmithL (Reject Obama's Half-Vast Wright-Wing Conspiracy)
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To: SmithL
Musta been all the ink ... I swear I saw "8"! ;-P


38 posted on 04/17/2008 5:02:50 PM PDT by Daffynition (The quieter you become, the more you are able to hear.)
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