Friday, April 4, 2008

Wild Octopuses Have Complex Lives

Marine biologists studying wild octopuses have found a kinky and violent society of jealous murders and gender-bending tricks. The new study was conducted by researchers from the University of California, Berkeley, who journeyed off the coast of Indonesia. They found that wild octopuses are far from the shy, unromantic loners their captive brethren appear to be. The scientists saw picky, macho males carefully select a mate, then guard their newly domesticated digs so jealously that they would occasionally use their 8-to-10-inch tentacles to strangle a romantic rival to death. Source: National Geographic