octopus climbing out of tanks

Wasn't it Bill Turlock who wrote:

But, all seriousnes aside, I clearly remember seeing a film a
long time ago where an octupus would crawl out of its tank and
unscrew a mason jar with a food-critter in it.

I remember seeing something very similar to that, but at no time was the
octopus out of the water. It squeezed through water-filled tubes and
through narrow holes, but never crossed a dry surface.

--
Mike Williams
Gentleman of Leisure

Mike Williams wrote:

Wasn't it Bill Turlock who wrote:

But, all seriousnes aside, I clearly remember seeing a film a
long time ago where an octupus would crawl out of its tank and
unscrew a mason jar with a food-critter in it.

I remember seeing something very similar to that, but at no time was the
octopus out of the water. It squeezed through water-filled tubes and
through narrow holes, but never crossed a dry surface.


OK, revise that to read, "I not very clearly remember..."

Bill Turlock "Bill Turlock wrote:

Nehmo wrote:

That story seems to say the crabs would win against the octopus. I
suppose it depends on how big they were. But, yes, you're right,
there's no video. Certainly, videos back then were rare.

I'm beginning to conclude the traveling-oct story has no truth to it.
Since plenty of people keep them as aquarium subjects, behavior as
bizarre as this would have been better documented by now.

But they are strange and probably smarter than we give them credit
for. I knew a girl who used to take walks on Portuguese fishing boats.
She said there were piles of freshly-caught still-alive octopuses on
the deck. When you walked past, the octopuses would follow you with
their eyes. She said you could see the expression of resignation an
pleading in their eyes.


Don't anthropomorphize the octupii, they hate that.

But, all seriousnes aside, I clearly remember seeing a film a
long time ago where an octupus would crawl out of its tank and
unscrew a mason jar with a food-critter in it. I suspect that
they are very intelligent. But not intelligent enough to avoid
getting caught.

The version of that story that I'd heard was to prove that an octopus
could generalize from watching something. They left the screwtop jar
in one octopus tank and the octopus had no idea what to do with it.
Then, in an adjacent tank, they added an octopus that had been trained
to open such a jar to get at dinner. After watching a few times, the
"naive" octopus was able to open the jar, too.
--
Tomorrow is today already.
Greg Goss, 1989-01-27

Greg Goss wrote:

Bill Turlock "Bill Turlock wrote:

Nehmo wrote:

That story seems to say the crabs would win against the octopus. I
suppose it depends on how big they were. But, yes, you're right,
there's no video. Certainly, videos back then were rare.

I'm beginning to conclude the traveling-oct story has no truth to it.
Since plenty of people keep them as aquarium subjects, behavior as
bizarre as this would have been better documented by now.

But they are strange and probably smarter than we give them credit
for. I knew a girl who used to take walks on Portuguese fishing boats.
She said there were piles of freshly-caught still-alive octopuses on
the deck. When you walked past, the octopuses would follow you with
their eyes. She said you could see the expression of resignation an
pleading in their eyes.


Don't anthropomorphize the octupii, they hate that.

But, all seriousnes aside, I clearly remember seeing a film a
long time ago where an octupus would crawl out of its tank and
unscrew a mason jar with a food-critter in it. I suspect that
they are very intelligent. But not intelligent enough to avoid
getting caught.

The version of that story that I'd heard was to prove that an octopus
could generalize from watching something. They left the screwtop jar
in one octopus tank and the octopus had no idea what to do with it.
Then, in an adjacent tank, they added an octopus that had been trained
to open such a jar to get at dinner. After watching a few times, the
"naive" octopus was able to open the jar, too.


OK. Then, what I remember is an octopus and a screw-top jar.

"Nehmo" wrote in message ps.com...
That story seems to say the crabs would win against the octopus. I
suppose it depends on how big they were. But, yes, you're right,
there's no video. Certainly, videos back then were rare.

I'm beginning to conclude the traveling-oct story has no truth to it.
Since plenty of people keep them as aquarium subjects, behavior as
bizarre as this would have been better documented by now.

There was a video about it, it is called "The Octopus Show".
It is part of NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC "Journeys With Wildlife" series.
I got it on DVD from eBay.co.uk - maybe you will find it also.
I do not remember if there is actual scene in the movie with octopus
actually doing the trick or if there is only a verbal report about it
done by the comentary voice...

But they are strange and probably smarter than we give them credit
for. I knew a girl who used to take walks on Portuguese fishing boats.
She said there were piles of freshly-caught still-alive octopuses on
the deck. When you walked past, the octopuses would follow you with
their eyes. She said you could see the expression of resignation an
pleading in their eyes.

Typical example of applying human interpretation to animals...
Not necessairly true interpretation.

Pushmi-Pullyu filted:

http://www.faculty.uaf.edu/ffrsb/out...elligence.html
"In 1873, a stock of young lump-fish in the Brighton Aquarium began
to slowly diminish for no apparent reason. Almost daily, there was one
less fish in the tank and no clues as to what had happened. One early
morning the mystery was solved when an aquarium official found an
octopus in the lump fishes' tank. The octopus somehow had discovered
that the fish were in an adjoining tank, and had thereafter raided it
nightly. To avoid detection, every night after its meal, the octopus
would return to its tank looking innocent of any wrong doing. But this
was not the end. After its capture, the octopus seemed to know that it
was being watched, so it remained in its tank for a week. Then one
night, two octopuses climbed out of the tank, the previous offender
and another, moved in opposite directions, both avoiding the adjacent
tanks and entered those beyond. Unfortunately for both octopuses, one
found itself in a tank with several over-sized crabs and the other
with a giant lobster."

There are two parts of this story that bother me more than the idea that an
octopus might travel from one tank to another...to wit:

a) "somehow had discovered" - I'd love to know how that happened...did one just
get out of its tank on a lark and happen to stumble across the tank full of
yummy edible fish?...

b) "looking innocent of any wrong doing" - intelligent I'll give you, but how
well does the body language of guilt and shame transfer across a species-gap
like that?...

Elsethread someone mentions "cephalopod porn"...I've seen video shot in the
aftermath of a deep-sea vent opening and raising the local temperature, in which
many species multiplied and grew prolifically...one brief sequence shows a pair
of octopuses [1] fondling each other...the narrator points out that not only are
they of two completely different species, but they're both male....

R H "does octopus hentai involve tentacles too?" Draney

[1] http://members.cox.net/bagelhenge/octo.jpg


--
"You got Schadenfreude on my Weltanschauung!"
"You got Weltanschauung in my Schadenfreude!"

"R H Draney" wrote in message
...
Pushmi-Pullyu filted:

http://www.faculty.uaf.edu/ffrsb/out...elligence.html
"In 1873, a stock of young lump-fish in the Brighton Aquarium began
to slowly diminish for no apparent reason. Almost daily, there was one
less fish in the tank and no clues as to what had happened. One early
morning the mystery was solved when an aquarium official found an
octopus in the lump fishes' tank. The octopus somehow had discovered
that the fish were in an adjoining tank, and had thereafter raided it
nightly. To avoid detection, every night after its meal, the octopus
would return to its tank looking innocent of any wrong doing. But this
was not the end. After its capture, the octopus seemed to know that it
was being watched, so it remained in its tank for a week. Then one
night, two octopuses climbed out of the tank, the previous offender
and another, moved in opposite directions, both avoiding the adjacent
tanks and entered those beyond. Unfortunately for both octopuses, one
found itself in a tank with several over-sized crabs and the other
with a giant lobster."

There are two parts of this story that bother me more than the idea that
an
octopus might travel from one tank to another...to wit:


Actually the fact the octopus didn't slaughter the crustys is my problem.
octopus love lobbys
which is why lobbys around here hang in caves with wobbys.
And wobbys love to eat ockys so it all works for every one.



a) "somehow had discovered" - I'd love to know how that happened...did
one just
get out of its tank on a lark and happen to stumble across the tank full
of
yummy edible fish?...

b) "looking innocent of any wrong doing" - intelligent I'll give you, but
how
well does the body language of guilt and shame transfer across a
species-gap
like that?...

Elsethread someone mentions "cephalopod porn"...I've seen video shot in
the
aftermath of a deep-sea vent opening and raising the local temperature, in
which
many species multiplied and grew prolifically...one brief sequence shows a
pair
of octopuses [1] fondling each other...the narrator points out that not
only are
they of two completely different species, but they're both male....

R H "does octopus hentai involve tentacles too?" Draney

[1] http://members.cox.net/bagelhenge/octo.jpg


--
"You got Schadenfreude on my Weltanschauung!"
"You got Weltanschauung in my Schadenfreude!"

swarvegorilla filted:

Actually the fact the octopus didn't slaughter the crustys is my problem.
octopus love lobbys
which is why lobbys around here hang in caves with wobbys.
And wobbys love to eat ockys so it all works for every one.

Do you talk like this in real life or what?...

R H "and is there any treatment for it?" Draney


--
"You got Schadenfreude on my Weltanschauung!"
"You got Weltanschauung in my Schadenfreude!"

"R H Draney" wrote in message
...
swarvegorilla filted:

Actually the fact the octopus didn't slaughter the crustys is my problem.
octopus love lobbys
which is why lobbys around here hang in caves with wobbys.
And wobbys love to eat ockys so it all works for every one.

Do you talk like this in real life or what?...

R H "and is there any treatment for it?" Draney


It's called 'Ocka' mate!
Only the chosen few can speak it, gods own t'would seem.
Now if you would prefer the laborious terms wobbegong, octopus and lobster
I can work it it,
but your just making it hard on yourself digger.




--
"You got Schadenfreude on my Weltanschauung!"
"You got Weltanschauung in my Schadenfreude!"

In article , R H Draney
wrote:

swarvegorilla filted:

Actually the fact the octopus didn't slaughter the crustys is my problem.
octopus love lobbys
which is why lobbys around here hang in caves with wobbys.
And wobbys love to eat ockys so it all works for every one.

Do you talk like this in real life or what?...

I'm assuming it's Strine. "Crustys" are crabs, "Ockys" are octopodes and
I'm no help with "wobbys" but apparently ockys are afeared of them.

R H "and is there any treatment for it?" Draney

Alas, it may be too late for him/her/it. Prevention says not to learn
speech in .au.

charles, I speaks real good English, bishop