avi@XN.LL.MIT.EDU (Avi Weiss) (07/13/87)
I was wondering whether an octopus is a fish or a reptile? Or prehaps some other class? Correct answers would be most appreciated!! thanks ---avi (avi @ xn.ll.mit.edu)
dd@a.UUCP (Dan Davison) (07/14/87)
In article <596@xn.LL.MIT.EDU>, avi@XN.LL.MIT.EDU (Avi Weiss) writes: > I was wondering whether an octopus is a fish or a reptile? Or prehaps > some other class? Correct answers would be most appreciated!! It's a highly developed mollusc, most closely related to the cuttlefish. dan davison Theoretical Biology, Los Alamos National Lab dd@lanl.gov (formerly at U of Houston)
felsenst@entropy.ms.washington.edu (Joe Felsenstein) (07/14/87)
In article <596@xn.LL.MIT.EDU> avi@XN.LL.MIT.EDU (Avi Weiss) writes: >I was wondering whether an octopus is a fish or a reptile? Or prehaps >some other class? Correct answers would be most appreciated!! It's in the Phylum Mollusca, a relative of clams, snails, etc. Fish and reptiles are in the Phylum Chordata together with us and a few others. The correct plural of "octopus" in Greek is, I am told, "octopodes". Now for the really interesting question: what is the butterfly: is it a bird or a bat? ;-) Joe Felsenstein, Dept. of Genetics, Univ. of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195 ... uw-beaver!uw-entropy!uw-evolution!joe
smitty@aeras.UUCP (Jim Smith) (07/14/87)
In article <596@xn.LL.MIT.EDU> avi@XN.LL.MIT.EDU (Avi Weiss) writes: >I was wondering whether an octopus is a fish or a reptile? Or prehaps >some other class? Correct answers would be most appreciated!! > > thanks > > ---avi (avi @ xn.ll.mit.edu) Would you believe mollusks (like in snails, clams, squid, etc.)? De-licious! You're welcome! Smitty -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Jim Smith, Arete Systems Corporation ...ucbvax!sun!aeras!smitty Disclaimer, datclaimer, everbody claimer but me! "I got no claims on no-bod-y & no-body got ... " -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
duncan@csd4.milw.wisc.edu (Shan D Duncan) (07/14/87)
In article <234@a.UUCP> dd@a.UUCP (Dan Davison) writes: >In article <596@xn.LL.MIT.EDU>, avi@XN.LL.MIT.EDU (Avi Weiss) writes: >> I was wondering whether an octopus is a fish or a reptile? Or prehaps >> some other class? Correct answers would be most appreciated!! > >It's a highly developed mollusc, most closely related to the cuttlefish. > >dan davison Theoretical Biology, Los Alamos National Lab >dd@lanl.gov >(formerly at U of Houston) And... The class is Cephalopoda ("head-foots") also along with the cuttlefish, there are the squids and nautilus. The class is considered to be the most evolutionary "advanced" of the invertebrates. Around 600 species living, all marine-- I believe. An interesting note---octopus show very good parental care and squid are believed to have a "better engineered/designed" eye then vertebrates. A whimsical notion by J. Diamond (sp?). If everything was created by design---then God is a squid :-). Shan
bill@ut-ngp.UUCP (Bill Jefferys) (07/14/87)
In article <623@entropy.ms.washington.edu> uw-entropy!uw-evolution!joe@uw-beaver.UUCP (Joe Felsenstein) writes: >In article <596@xn.LL.MIT.EDU> avi@XN.LL.MIT.EDU (Avi Weiss) writes: >>I was wondering whether an octopus is a fish or a reptile? Or prehaps >>some other class? Correct answers would be most appreciated!! > >It's in the Phylum Mollusca, a relative of clams, snails, etc. Which is, I suppose, the ultimate origin of BC's great discovery: "Clams got legs!!!" Bill Jefferys
baron@uhccux.UUCP (Baron Fujimoto) (07/14/87)
In article <596@xn.LL.MIT.EDU> avi@XN.LL.MIT.EDU (Avi Weiss) writes:
<I was wondering whether an octopus is a fish or a reptile? Or prehaps
<some other class? Correct answers would be most appreciated!!
<
< thanks
<
< ---avi (avi @ xn.ll.mit.edu)
the octopus is a mollusk, and I think is generally considered the most
intelligent of the invertebrates.
--
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lonetto@phri.UUCP (Michael Lonetto) (07/17/87)
In article <596@xn.LL.MIT.EDU> avi@XN.LL.MIT.EDU (Avi Weiss) writes: >I was wondering whether an octopus is a fish or a reptile? Or prehaps >some other class? Correct answers would be most appreciated!! > ---avi (avi @ xn.ll.mit.edu) The octopi, along with squids and cuttlefish, are all mollusks. I don't have my guide to taxonomy around so I can't be any more specific. One interesting sidelight to the classification is that the octopus/squid group has extremely well developed eyes, which show a surprising similarity to vertebrate eyes (certainly far closer than any other invertebrate). These animals also have very fast, complex nervous systems, once again on a par with vertebrate systems. Interestingly, the speed is achieved without myelination of the nerve axons (the system used in vertebrates). Instead, the axons are enormous in size (hence the use of the "giant" squid axon in neurotransmission studies. ML -- Michael Lonetto UUCP:(allegra!phri!lonetto) USMAIL: Public Health Research Institute, 455 1st Ave, NY, NYioneto)S
howard@cpocd2.UUCP (07/20/87)
In article <2797@phri.UUCP> lonetto@phri.UUCP (Michael Lonetto) writes: >These animals also have very fast, complex nervous systems, once again >on a par with vertebrate systems. Interestingly, the speed is achieved >without myelination of the nerve axons (the system used in vertebrates). >Instead, the axons are enormous in size (hence the use of the "giant" >squid axon in neurotransmission studies. Even more interesting is that octopus nervous systems use neurohormones which are catecholamines, and are very similar to adrenaline and noradrenaline (also catecholamines). (Nor)Adrenaline is also called (nor)epinephrine. The synthetic pathways are also similar, with about as much difference between different species of octopus as there is between some octopi and humans. (The enzymes involved are different, but the sequence of transformations from phenylalanine -> tyrosine -> ... -> final hormone is nearly identical to human in some species.) Considering that this entire pathway appears to have evolved separately from the mammalian one, the parallel is remarkable. This leads to some curious speculations. For example, it is quite possible that certain catecholamine-like psychotropic drugs (mescaline, MDA, "Ecstasy", amphetamines, ...) would "work" in octopi in a similar manner to the way they "work" in humans. Of course, this would be hard to verify experimentally, since recording the subjective experience of an octopus is a difficult matter. The prospect of dealing with an octopus on a bad trip must also give one pause :-O. If there's any interest, I could dig out my paper on neurohormone biosynthesis, but it's of ~1970 vintage, hence not entirely up to date. -- Howard A. Landman ...!{oliveb,...}!intelca!mipos3!cpocd2!howard howard%cpocd2%sc.intel.com@RELAY.CS.NET "... precisely the opposite of what we now know to be true."
richard@gryphon.CTS.COM (Richard Sexton) (07/23/87)
. . . >This leads to some curious speculations. For example, it is quite >possible that certain catecholamine-like psychotropic drugs (mescaline, >MDA, "Ecstasy", amphetamines, ...) would "work" in octopi in a similar >manner to the way they "work" in humans. Of course, this would be hard >to verify experimentally, since recording the subjective experience of >an octopus is a difficult matter. The prospect of dealing with an >octopus on a bad trip must also give one pause :-O. > >-- > Howard A. Landman Well, that explains why the little buggers change color and 'melt' in your hand. (But not in your moth). -- Richard Sexton INTERNET: richard@gryphon.CTS.COM UUCP: {akgua, hplabs!hp-sdd, sdcsvax, ihnp4, nosc}!crash!gryphon!richard "Its too dark to put the key in my ignition..."