A CURATED COLLECTION OF SCIENCE FACTS AND DELICIOUS FICTIONS !

6/23/26

100 MILLION YEARS AGO GIANT OCTOPUS - UP TO 62 FEET LONG - WERE PREDATORS IN THE OCEANS


CNN : GIANT OCTOPUS FOSSIL : TOP PREDATORS 100 MILLION YEARS AGO

Excerpt: Giant octopuses measuring up to 62 feet (19 meters) in length were among the top ocean predators around 100 million years ago, according to new research that uncovered rare fossils hidden within solid rock.

Remarkably well-preserved specimens of the octopuses’ powerful jaws show signs of intense wear from crushing hard prey including shells and bones, a study published in the journal Science on Thursday reports.

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Take a look at the photo of the fossil as well as artist interpretations of these giant octopus!  These were way bigger than today's giant squid!

6/12/26

THE GOLD ORB : SCIENTISTS FIGURE OUT WHAT THIS BLOB IT IS!



Excerpt: Scientists with NOAA Fisheries and the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History used an integrative taxonomic approach combining a study of its physical structure with genetic analysis to identify the object. Initial examination found the object lacked typical animal anatomy but was a fibrous material with a layered surface packed with cnidocytes (stinging cells), suggesting it was a cnidarian (like corals or anemones). National Systematics Lab scientist Abigail Reft identified the cells as spirocysts, which are limited to the Hexacorallia group of cnidarians. The team also examined a similar specimen collected in 2021 during an expedition on Schmidt Ocean Institute’s Research Vessel Falkor and found similar cnidocysts.

6/3/26

YELLOW BRICK ROAD AT THE DEEP BOTTOM OF THE OCEAN?

Is this THE YELLOW BRICK ROAD?   LiliÊ»uokalani Ridge Seamounts

SCIENCE ALERT : YELLOW BRICK ROAD OFF HAWAIIAN ISLANDS

Excerpt: Trust/E/V/Nautilus/YouTube)

The formation has been identified as "a fractured flow of hyaloclastite rock (a volcanic rock formed in high-energy eruptions where many rock fragments settle to the seabed)."

On the radio, the team notes that the ground looks almost like a "baked crust" that could be peeled off.

In one tiny section, the volcanic rock has fractured in a way that looks strikingly similar to bricks.

"The unique 90-degree fractures are likely related to heating and cooling stress from multiple eruptions at this baked margin," reads a caption to the YouTube video.


5/30/26

300 MILLION YEAR "WORLD'S OLDEST OCTOPUS" TURNS OUT TO BE A COUSIN!

300 MILLION YEAR OLD FOSSIL SHOWING WHAT SCIENTIST BELIEVED TO BE THE OLDEST OCTOPUS !

Excerpt: Shockwaves echoed across the scientific community, this week, when what was believed to be the world’s oldest fossil of an octopus, was actually another animal entirely.

The fossil was even featured in the Guinness Book of World Records, dubbing it with the title as the “earliest known octopus,” existing during its lifetime not far from Chicago in today’s landlocked Illinois, USA. They even described it as, “resembling a flattened cow pat or a globular splat, but it possesses eight tentacles, two eyes, and what may be an ink sac – all features characterizing octopuses of today.”


SURFER COM : 300 MILLION YEAR OLD OCTOPUS FOSSIL

Take a look at that fossil!

5/27/26

WHALE SWIMS 20 MILES IN RIVER -DEAD - FEAR FOR SPECIES : GRAY WHALE POPULATION HALF IN A DECADE

Siren here!  I believe the whales are starving and humans are the reason. 

I first heard this story via the Seattle Times:



BBC: Gray Whale Dies Days After Swimming River


Excerpt: The juvenile whale, affectionately dubbed "Willapa Willy" by locals, was first spotted last Wednesday in the north fork of the river, about 145 miles southwest of Seattle, the marine mammal research group said.

The whale, "although thin, was behaving normally," the group said at the time, with no sign of injuries.

Its teams had hoped the whale would find its own way out of the river but it failed to do so.