#common octopuses

[antiqueanimals]

Elements of Zoölogy: A Text-book. Written by Sanborn Tenney. 1875.

Internet Archive

[hyydraworks]

Swear, will be returning to tiny guys soon, just having a real fun time illustrating these mugs. Also thank you to everyone who was like ‘hey, I follow you on Tumblr!’ That stopped by Common Ground Fair this past weekend, it was a handful of folks, but is just the coolest thing any time it happens.

[histsciart]

Common Octopus

The oceanic common octopus (Octopus vulgaris) lives in tropical, subtropical, and temperate waters throughout the world. They have three hearts, and they can change their coloration to match their environment. As one of the most studied marine species, these octopuses have demonstrated that they can navigate mazes, open jars, and raid lobster traps.

SciArt by Jean Baptiste Vérany for Histoire Naturelle, T.2 (1835-1848), which was digitized by Museums Victoria for inclusion in Biodiversity Heritage Library.

Learn more about the scientific illustration in this wonderful article by John R. Dolan, The Cephalopods of Jean-Baptiste Vérany: the Beast and the Beauties (April 2022)

[teeth--king]

Another dumb poll spurred by inner monologue time! How many people know how to pronounce words that contain double vowels like "a'a". This is coming from an english speaker.

Was gonna add to no not knowing words like that, but hell man, there's so many words out there, no shame in not knowing them all.

[blanketorghost]

Octomer Baby Development: A guide for new parents (Part 1)

Parenthood can be as fulfilling as it is challenging, and for new parents, this may seem like a daunting task to make. But with the help of this handbook, you will be walked over all there is to know about the newest member of your family and how to take care of them.

PHASE 1—THE EGG:

0-2 months:

The egg has just been laid. Roughly about the size of a bead. Though coloring may vary, most octomer eggs look transluscent with a bright colored center, in which the embryo is located.

Unlike octopuses, octomers only lay one or two viable eggs per mating cycle. This greatly increases their life expectancy as their digestive system no longer shuts down inlieu of producing viable eggs. Octomer eggs, like most marine life eggs, are extremely fragile and squishy. Parents often create a small nest out of weaved kelp, sea cucumbers, and soft live coral. These are not only meant to cushion the egg, but the toxic tendrils of the live coral help protect their precious offspting from predators.

Another difference to Otopus eggs, is their shspes. Since Octomer eggs aren't hung on the ceiling of an underwater cave, they lack that telltale teardrop shape most octopus eggs are known for, instead taking a more spherical form.

3-5 Months:

On this stage, the egg is about the size of a ping pong ball. Eyes and a mouth start to look visible and the embryo's body starts to develop the octomer's signature 8 arms. Though poor, their sight and hearing will develop and the embryo will start reacting to sounds and light. It is recommended parents start talking to the egg to incentivize development.

It is common for octomer parents to carry their egg around in small pouches or bags so the embryo can be stimulated by outside sounds and light fluctuations at different sea levels.

5-7 months:

Most of the octomer's body is fully developed at this point and sex can be determined by the lack or prescence of a hectocotylus. The outer membrane of the egg also starts to lose color and become more fragile as the embryo absorbs more nutrients. The egg is about the size of a billiard.

At this point, it is not recommended to move the egg, as it could possibly harm the delicate shell and cause premature hatching.

7-9 months:

After absorbing all the nutrients from the egg, the octomer baby is expected to pip and hatch around this time. The outer layer is expected to be completely transluscent as all nutrients have been absorbed, and instead all coloration has been transfered to the newly hatched baby.

At this stage, their chromatophores aren't fully developed, and as such, most octomers at this stage only have light pale coloration alongside freckles or marks reminiscent of their specific species. Octomer babies have also not developed the ability to create water jets, and due to their small size— around the size of a baseball— can be swept by ocean currents. This is why, most octomer babies will be constantly in the care of their parents up until they've reached 24 inches or 61.4 cms in size.

[amnhnyc]

Cephalopod lovers, have you ever heard of the Dumbo octopus? 🐙 Members of the genus Grimpoteuthis, these critters are the deepest-living octopus known to science and can be found near the seafloor at depths of up to 13,000 ft (4,000 m). These adorable cephalopods flap their ear-like fins as they move through the water—a behavior that inspired scientists to name the genus Grimpoteuthis after Disney’s flying elephant. Unlike many other octopuses, Dumbo octopuses do not have ink sacs. Some scientists think it’s because they rarely encounter predators in their extremely remote, deep-sea habitats.

Photo: NOAA Okeanos Explorer, CC0, Wikimedia Commons

[courtesycalling]

would you happen to have any more headcanons related to octo valley/canyon culture? i’m a very big fan of the way you portray agent 8 and i’m curious about your headcanons for the area that she’s from

Octolings don't experience senescence like ancestral octopuses do, but there's still historically been a high maternal mortality rate for related reasons. Due to this, it's common in many Octo cultures to not be raised by one's own parents. In Octo Valley/Canyon, there is a strongly established and heavily used state foster system. Most of its residents are from parents who were encouraged to prioritize their careers over all else, and the majority of these children are pushed into the military training program. It's statistically likely (though not definite) that Eight was raised here.

Due to long-term birth rate decline, larger & larger amounts of Octarians have been created from limb cuttings to fill out the workforce. The military can't recruit enough women anymore.

Traditional gender roles dictate that women (esp. working class) do physical labor, but it's not necessarily a matriarchal society.

Occupants of the underground Octoling world are fairly diverse in terms of ancestry, but there has been a notable amount of cultural assimilation, especially directly after the end of the war. It's likely that Eight is descended from multiple different groups of Octolings who came from somewhere else originally, and were forced underground a few generations ago. It's also likely that she was raised with no connection to their cultures. If she reconnected to anything, she learned about it from surface-dwellers.

A fair amount of music, dance, fashion, and other artforms on the surface either originated from or were heavily developed by underground-dwelling Octolings. Though this has been especially true recently due to migration, there's always been exchange as things were smuggled across borders.

[hellsitegenetics]

My favorite animal? Well it would have to be the tailless whip scorpion. Why? By all accounts its a monster. The long pedipalps, its whip like legs, its speed, and propensity to hide in dark, damp, and narrow places.

But these certain arachnids are gentle. They have families that they can recognize. They have their own dance. In a world of apes, octopuses, and birds could something so small be so intelligent? Is that intelligence?

String identified: at aa? t a t t ta c. ? a acct t a t. T g a, t g, t , a t t a, a, a a ac.

t t cta aac a gt. T a a tat t ca cg. T a t ac. a a, ct, a c tg a tgt? tat tgc?

Closest match: Ligustrum vulgare genome assembly, chromosome: 8 Common name: Common privet

[littlebluespoon]

Stuck (Again) Octo!König Part 2

Here we go, part 2. A bit of a darker but still as adorable König. This ended up three times the length of part 1 and I'm considering a part 3 if y'all want it :)

Part 1 - Stuck Part 3 - Unstuck Part 4 - Stranded

On the journey back to base you noticed that König was still bleeding, while it was slower than in his human form it was soaking through your shirt. At some point you were going to have to treat him but you had no experience in aquatic shifters and seeing as it wasn’t in his file, you doubted the Kortac medics knew more than you. Of course, priority number one was to get him unattached from you, 

“König, you’re still bleeding. You gotta let go so I can figure out how bad it is.” Gently you try to pry his tentacles off but every time you get one and move onto the next he just re-attaches it,

“König! You need to let go now!” you resort to scolding and annoying him in the hope that something will work, “You need medical attention you stubborn ass, let go or shift back.” Emphasising each word with a poke to his face.

A staring contest with an octopus was not on your to-do list for today. But for the last hour it’s the only thing you’ve accomplished. Everyone else has been seen to, all patched up and every joke about your new accessory ignored, even the paperwork has been finished. You needed a plan and you needed to know more about octopuses.

Firing up everyone’s best research tool, Google, you delve into the world of an octopus. Learning that their tentacles are actually arms and that they taste with them; that they have a beak; three hearts and that they can lose and regrow their arms. The last fact seemed the most important to you, it meant you didn’t have to be gentle in pulling him off you. But first you tried something a little less rough, getting into the shower. Figuring that he had to be feeling a little dried out you opted to get under the water and hoped it would encourage hum to pull off. It took some persistence but after about ten minutes and with some more, slightly rougher prodding, König eventually detached himself from your chest,

“There we go, that wasn’t so hard now was it?” you gently splash some water over him and watch as he rolls around, throwing it all over the place. 

After a while of playing and laughing at the small octopus’s antics you made a move to get up as your wet clothes were getting uncomfortable but the movement startled König,

“hey, no, sorry buddy. I didn’t mean to scare you,” you’re reaching forward to pick him up when it happens, “ No, König come back!” he scurries off, faster than you thought he could and by the time you’ve slipped your way through the shower bank, he’s gone.

~~~

In the weeks following on base, you only ever saw König out of your peripheral. Always lingering but with no interaction. And then Kortac were called out. Months went by with no sign of him but every week you learned a little more about him. Taking aquatic hybrid first aid courses, researching more about octopuses and their hybrid types. Learning that they were solitary animals explained a lot for you and it was in your first aid courses that you learned how rare an octopus hybrid is. Most female octopus hybrids die after giving birth, it's something they have in common with the animal counterpart, so they mostly live isolated lives with only other females for company and it’s the males that keep the genetics going by taking a human partner.

The day König returned to your life was a bad day. You slept through your alarm and missed parade, your supply delivery was missing nearly everything you’d ordered, drowning in paperwork meant you missed lunch and to top it all off, it had not stopped raining. So when you heard the shouts outside the infirmary you nearly burst into tears. Instead your door burst open and six men rushed in carrying König. Time froze, you could no nothing but stare at him, at the cuts, burns, the pole sticking out of his arm. The blue blood covering the room in seconds. In reality you were already screaming orders and reaching for your fully stocked aquatic first aid kit. Something that had never been used, something that you had only gotten for him even though he wasn’t your responsibility. 

Hours passed; marked by vital checks, medicine doses and dressing changes. Hours passed and König remained unconscious, too exhausted to even trigger his body’s defences and shift into his smaller, more durable form. Hours turned to days. Days that were marked by the cold cups of tea left undrunk, the smell of antiseptic burning its way into your skin, the cold of his hand under yours. You had vowed to not move until you were sure he’d heal. Until he shifted and you could carry him with you.

Eight days passed in this manner. You as quiet as him, only your breathing and the machines made noise in the room. That’s when it happened, the heart rate monitor alarmed, the oxygen meter, everything in the room was going off but all you could do was stare at him. Now dwarfed in the bed was König, seven and a half arms, bright orange, and awake. And trying to run away,

“Oh no you don’t.” You snatch him up from the edge and immediately pull him to your chest, “Not this time buddy, you’re missing half an arm and even if you weren’t you lost so much blood I looked like a smurf!” sensing that he wasn’t getting away, you watched with a fond smile as he squirmed his way under your shirt and returned to his favourite spot.

“Right, now that you’re out of danger and awake lets get some food first. Crab or shrimp?” You asked the little guy, giving him a pet on the head and chuckling as he lets out a series of clicks. 

Walking into the mess hall meant you were rushed by every Kortac soldier there,

“Is he okay?” “Can we see him?” “Will he survive?” 

While not a very sociable person, König was well respected as a soldier and commander. The lower ranks looked up to him and idolised him.

“He’s fine, he’s doing a lot better but he needs some more monitoring. I’m sure you can all see him soon.” You let them all know that you’ll tell him they were asking and pass on their get well soon messages before heading through to the kitchen and to the freezer at the back which held the specially ordered food for hybrids with dietary requirements.

Dinner was interesting. If anyone was watching you they were going to think they were hallucinating as they watched you drop bits of crab down your top. The few sounds König made were quite, small pops and low whistles that only you could hear and you hoped it meant he was enjoying the food. In between feeding him you fed yourself and eventually it was time for to head back, König needed more medicine and you wanted to check for infections after your little excursion.

“On the bed please, I gotta grab your medicine.” Expectedly holding out your hand for him to climb onto as you pull down your shirt but he doesn’t move, “König, sweetheart, move.” More prodding, more pulling, all id did was leave you with little sucker shaped bruises.

“König, I swear to god I’m not doing this again. Get on the bed. Maybe, if you behave- we can go in the shower again” Bargaining was your last resort, you couldn’t check him over if he was still attached to you.

Slowly you watched as König’s arms moved, one at a time, to pull him up your body. Pulling harder at your skin than he had before to leave marks up your neck before eventually settling on your throat with his arms wrapped around your neck. Your protests were short lived as the second you opened your mouth he squeezed a little tighter, not relaxing until you stopped trying to speak altogether.

Your night continued like this, paperwork was done with the occasional ink drip, talking to patients was done with as few words as possible, bending over wasn’t comfortable and your top ended up soaking anyway as König dumped your wattle bottle over himself and then demanded more with whistles increasing in pitch as you refused. As you signed the last report you tried once more to get him off,

“You’ve had your fun König but I’m tired. I want to go to bed and you need medication so plea-“ your words are cut off by a harsh squeeze that takes your breath away. Louds clicks punctuated by the slapping of tentacles against your skin fill your ears before eventually you’re allowed to breathe again. Taking the hint, you make your way to the shower before bed, promising yourself that tomorrow you’ll find a way to get him unstuck.

~~~

As always, asks and requests are open. Feel free to send me stuff, questions, whatevers 💙

[bogleech]

Why do the adult stages of insects have short lifespans?

Most animals can't reproduce, and most don't even develop the organ systems to do so, until almost the end of their development. Many mammals are actually rare freaks for their ability to start reproducing as little as a third into their lifespan, and keep reproducing over and over until they die; it's an extreme and radical survival strategy we evolved that comes with some pretty severe trade-offs, in that we have high energy demands and require so, so much food in proportion to most other organisms, not to mention all the ways those reproduction systems can take on illness, malfunction or hurt us. Other animals like birds and reptiles and various fish opted instead to reach adult size as fast as they can, build the reproductive system, and then just take it easy: they live a long time and can mate more than once, but they don't do so constantly and don't make that many young. The MOST common strategy in nature, basically the default norm is to devote most of your life just to eating, growing, and storing resources in your body, then "spend" all the resources you can on reproduction, giving so much of your energy to your babies that it actually kills you. The upside is that this is why most animals make hundreds or even thousands of young in one go, which better guarantees that at least one will survive. Salmon and octopuses are two of the most famous non-insects that do it that way, but so do thousands of other mollusks, fish, members of the various "worm" phyla and others. Many insect groups hyper-streamlined this, so they have a larval stage that's just an eating machine, like caterpillars and maggots, possessing only the bare minimum anatomy they need to keep on eating and growing and nothing else, usually incapable of even traveling from the same food source they were born on. They then use up all of this stored energy to create a body that is perfect for perpetuating their species, including more mobility (such as wings) to spread their population further. Insects exhibit almost every variation there is, but many insect groups hyper-streamlined the basic method so they have a larval stage devoted to non-stop eating, like a caterpillar or a maggot, devoid of any anatomy that does not help it collect all the energy it can as continuously as it can, then use up that energy to build an equally dedicated mating form, which may last only days or weeks because it even gave up the ability to eat as it devoted as much of its body as possible to making those babies in that one big go. There are still many exceptions including insects like cockroaches who mirror the mammal strategy of mating over and over for a relatively "long" adult life, or insects that still only mate the one time, but still at the end of a fairly long adult life that continues to eat and store energy. The most extreme exception to this might be aphids, which continuously develop clone offspring and give live birth to them for their entire life, by which I mean some aphids are born already pregnant with their first clone. These actually still go through a normal mating process too, though, when a winged male finds them near the end of the year, and then they die after laying proper eggs that can survive the winter. The non-stop clone babies are just so that one female has even higher odds of mating with at least one of those males, because now there's 10,000 of her for him to find. To understand basically everything in nature you just have to understand that: 1: life forms actually work like video game characters in that they constantly "farm experience" (nutrient energy) they have to spend on their unique spread of stats and abilities (every body part and system comprising them) 2: every life form evolves as if the only goal of that entire game is to generate offspring and increase the odds of their survival, literally no matter what must be sacrificed.

[mochinomnoms]

This is a very specific thing I said to my friends so if they follow your blog then they would know who I am but the whole thing of buy one get two free deal came from something that is common in my country where in local bazaars they sell these showering kits that came with shampoo, conditioner and a bottle of liquid soap my mind clearly infected with twst could only think about the octotrio being one of these packages Azul is the soap, and the twins are the shampoo and conditioner and the three of the products are wrapped with tape so you are forced to get the three which is oddly cute to me but onto the main thing!

Came up with another octotrio polycule idea since yuu represents a shrimp in Floyd's weird lenses of seeing the world sometimes if done intentionally or not you tend to clean up the twins or patch them up even fixing up their (poorly put on) uniform Jade got dirt in his face when he was in a mountain trip? Come here you careless eel and wipe out the dirt then you can talk about your new findings BUT WASH YOUR HANDS FIRST

Floyd decided to do parkour or maybe he just dumped a whole smoothie on himself because he was hot and used the drink to cool off and there you go, disinfect the wounds or scratches and putting silly cute band-aids (one time he got mad that his favorite design was out and you placed a mushroom design band aid since he still needed one, remind yourself to go stack up with the band-aids before Jade goes and sniffles about his dear brother using his favorite band-aids)

I am thinking that since the twins are a bit much more affectionate or aren't as busy as Azul is, you are doing one of your "Nurse/cleaner shirmp" (Floyd gave them the name) on one of the tweels and you guys were in Azul's office so he sighs trying to get attention he wishes that he also got his own nurse/cleaner shirmp affections if he doesn't say it out loud he can and will break his pen/ink flask and oh no! His gloves are completely ruined!! Clearly coaxing you into helping him with the mess or when he does voice his wishes about it when you two/three are present the tweels are quick to tease him about it "I thought that octopuses didn't go to cleaner shrimp stations?" or "Would you be able to provide protection in exchange? I thought that octopuses weren't predators" Okay that was rude, it is on. Of course that he can protect the shrimpy and if octopuses didn't go to cleaner shirmp stations then he would change that! Overall silliness and sweetness (They are having a discussion about planning to surprise you with a visit to the coral sea and going to visit their parents!!) they might turn almost anything into a friendly/loving competition and you are trapped in them but they are still so sweet and caring for you and each other 10/10 definitely a unique dynamic but awesome either way

(the same anon forcing their brain to fabricate more octotrio polycule ideas)

I think Floyd takes the most delight in seeing you care for them like an actual shrimp. He thinks it's endearing and will definitely make efforts to get dirty or mildly hurt so that you'll attend to him.

The other two have their own nicknames for you: Jade calls you and Azul My Pearl/Darling while Azul calls you Angelfish and the twins Dear(s).

It's Azul's way of showing affection, as he is quite reserved with his affections, at least until you're all in private. He does envy the liberal affections that the twins have with you, Floyd in particular doesn't care much about what others think, and Jade generally is more reserved than his brother, but will still give you chaste kisses when saying hello/goodbye. Azul, at most, will hold hands and maybe tuck a loose strand of hair behind your ears, something he often does during quiet moments.

It may be silly, but he gets a little jealous at seeing y'all share PDA when he's still getting used to the new dynamic. So he's coaxing you to come help him clean up! Look at his hands, they're absolutely stained with ink! Won't you please help him clean up Angelfish? 🥺

It backfires as the twins also take the opportunity to “care” for Azul. Instead of letting you fuss over him quickly, they decide that this is a sign that he's much too tired to continue working, look at the mess he made! It's time to close his office early and cuddle pile in his bedroom!! Jade's making the extra effort to run a bath in the absurdly large tub in Azul's private bathroom, while Floyd is running around collecting pillows and blankets to make a nest/fort. You do your do diligence and help Jade tend to him, causing him to get more and more flustered.

The night ends with the twins teasing the silly little octopus for wanting some tending from the shrimp. They're complaining that he never asks for affection like that from them!!! Eels can be gentle too, we promise Azul~

[vestaignis]

Кокосовый осьминог принадлежащий к роду Amphioctopus marginatus.The coconut octopus belongs to the genus Amphioctopus marginatus.

Кокосовые осьминоги — это бентосные (обитающие на дне) животные из семейства обыкновенных осьминогов (Octopodidae). Они обитают в водах Индо-Тихоокеанской области на мелководье и на глубинах до 190 метров.Основная часть осьминога (туловище), как правило, около 8 см, и с щупальцами, около 15 сантиметров в длину.  Рисунок на их теле напоминает прожилки или вены, откуда пошло второе английское название осьминог с жилками. Руки обычно окрашены темнее и контрастируют с ярко-белыми присосками, которые способными отражать свет, из-за чего ошибочно кажутся  флуоресцирующими.

Кокосовые осьминоги обычно охотятся на креветок, крабов, моллюсков и проявляют необычное поведение, такое как двуногая ходьба и использование скорлупы кокосового ореха или ракушки для жилья. Иногда кокосовые осьминоги прячутся в пластиковых стаканчиках, стеклянных и жестяных бутылках, мыльницах и другом мусоре. А иногда — в раковинах брюхоногих моллюсков. Кокосовый осьминог умеет менять свой окрас в зависимости от настроения. Это происходит благодаря множеству красящих пигментов в организме. Под влиянием импульсов, исходящих от нервной системы, в обычном состоянии осьминог имеет коричневатый оттенок, в злом – красный, а когда он испуган – белый.

Coconut octopuses are benthic (bottom-dwelling) animals from the family of common octopuses (Octopodidae). They live in the waters of the Indo-Pacific region in shallow waters and at depths of up to 190 meters. The main part of the octopus (torso) is usually about 8 cm, and with tentacles, about 15 centimeters in length. The pattern on their body resembles veins or veins, hence the second English name veined octopus. The arms are usually darker colored and contrast with the bright white suckers, which are capable of reflecting light, causing them to mistakenly appear to be fluorescent. Coconut octopuses typically hunt shrimp, crabs, shellfish, and exhibit unusual behaviors such as bipedal walking and using coconut shells or shells for shelter. Sometimes coconut octopuses hide in plastic cups, glass and tin bottles, soap dishes and other garbage. And sometimes in the shells of gastropods. The coconut octopus can change its color depending on its mood. This occurs due to the many coloring pigments in the body. Under the influence of impulses emanating from the nervous system, in its normal state the octopus has a brownish tint, when angry it is red, and when it is scared it is white. Источник: https://moreprodukt.info/kalmary/kokosovyy-osminog,//pikabu.ru/story/kokosovyiy_osminog_nauchilsya_zhit_vnutri_palmovyikh_orekhov_bezuprechnaya_zashchita_i_vnezapnoe_napadenie_8459109, /alexkolos.livejournal.com/76110.html,/moreprodukt.info/kalmary/kokosovyy-osminog.

[a-twistedheartslonging]

Hiii, Harpy anon again.

I have more thoughts. Instead of making Idia a dog boy, I say we make him an insect. Mostly because there are some insects out there that just make sense for him. (Also because he kinda look like bug to me tbh)

For example, spiders. (Yes I know they aren't insects but they look insects and that's all that matters) Spiders specifically have a lot of significance in Greek mythology, so it would make sense for Idia (who is based off a Greek god) to have some kind of connection there. But also spiders tend to be solitary creatures, they don't live in groups and only come together during mating. And a lot of the time, during mating the males are killed by their female mates. Which..I feel like is why Idia would avoid Yuu like the plague. Because all he can think about near them is "Mate.Mate.Mate.Mate.MATE-" and he's scared if he tries anything he'll get killed immediately.

Now I don't know if we've talked about Ortho yet but I feel like he's a little robot bee. I know it doesn't really go with spider Idia but Robot bee Ortho would be so gosh darn cute. There was a study done on bee's that came to the conclusion that when bee's bump into eachother they make a little "Whoop" noise. IMAGINE BUMPING INTO BEE ORTHO AND HE JUST GOES "Whoop!"

AGSJSGAHSVSS

Ahem, sorry got carried away there for a sec. Bee's are also very protected of their hive and other bees in said hive, so I can't help but imagine if Yuu gets picked on Ortho immediately just pulls out the laser beams. Bee's can also smell fear. Giving bee Ortho this trait is like giving a toddler a glock and telling them to go do a crime. It is both horrifying and hilarious at the same time.

Robot Bee Boy.

BeeBot that makes cute noises when bumping into things.

So very cute. I don't have much to add to that except look at this cute bee butt.

Now...spooder Idia...

Did anyone else see Kar'niss from Baldr's Gate 3 and thought he was hella fine?

What kind of spider would he be? If he's one of the fluffy kinds I love the idea of his floof matching his hair. Would he have multiple eyes? Fangs on top of having those already pointy teethies?

Did you know an interesting thing that bee's and some spiders have in common his helping with pollinating plants?

Hmm drider's are usually big and people in general already don't like regular spiders very much. Poor Idia is just going to keep getting more reasons to not leave his room. 😔Oh Jeez Jamil would prob freak out seeing him.

Man, Idia and Azul have it bad. For females of both of their kind if they don't kill you after sex cuz doing the diddly works up an appetite, they might kill males that they simply rejected...or just because they got too close.

Another thing that both male octopuses and spiders have been shown to do to lower the risk is present their possible mate with food. Azul's an amazing cook with his own restaurant and Idia has a surplus of every kind of snack/junk food you can think of so at least they have that going.

Still, I would like to think that even if that happens with their kind in that world it's not nearly as bad or quite as common. Funny though to think of Idia screeching when he sees you and tossing a few bags of gummies and chips at you.

Also....to avoid getting eaten after sex some male spiders will actually tie the female up in his web and set her free after. Do with that info what you will.

Some spiders also do a mating dance, but you have a snowball's chance in hell of seeing him do that.

Still, it's just more things that get these types of nonhuman boys thinking that you the little would be the best choice when it comes to finding a mate. AMAB? Cool. AFAB? Well, human ones don't cannibalize so it's all good....well once the guys learned that they don't.

Plus, once he gets to actually know you and see how you're the least threatening thing in the school things will be easier.

Once he's comfortable around you get to see something amazing...

That he's a snarky little shit with so much sass. He's a weird combination of having issues with self-loathing while also having an ego.

One time you tried to bite him for mouthing off and he was legit scared for a sec but once he saw those little teeth of yours couldn't even make a scratch on the exoskeleton on his arm, he gets super freaking smug, and now he's even more of a shit when teasing you.

One of the cool things is that you can legit ride him places cuz he big spooder. It's too bad it rarely if ever happens with being a shut in.

He'll still let you sit on him like that when you guys are in his room.

A cool thing he can do is climb on walls and ceilings, does it often when trying to sneak to the vending machines on campus without being seen. He has unfortunately been seen once or twice though and it scared the hell out of the poor student to see a giant freaking spider on the ceiling and almost made Idia drop his snacks.

His webs are pretty and glowy, he kind of has them around his room set up like fairy light.

Weird fact, spiders can taste with their feet.

Cute fact, some spiders will keep a frog as a pet. Frog helps keep the spider's eggs from getting eaten and the spider protects the frog from other things.

I'm kind of picturing Idia as the spider and you as the frog. You are his emotional support human that he keeps close when he has to leave his lair.

He unintentionally gives you scary dog privileges.

Imagine working your shift at Twisted McDonald and a little human comes up to you with this big-ass sharp-toothed spider dude behind them, you are scared out of your mind but then the human says "Excuse me, he asked for no pickles."

[somethingusefulfromflorida]

No joke, the actual answer is D, because echinoderms like star fish and sea cucumbers are most closely related to vertebrates. Octopuses are mollusks, barnacles are arthropods, and earthworms are annelids, which are all protostomes. Sea cucumbers and tyrannosaurs are both deuterostomes. The common ancestor of sea cucumbers and dinosaurs lived more recently than the common ancestor of sea cucumbers and any of the other three.

[angrytomatto]

Summary of random facts about Merman because I'm bore (probably will update with time)

We talk about this in a discord server and I just want to leave it here in case I forget

(Every fact here is based of what has been said in game, fan theories aren't canonically facts in this list) Last update: December 2023

(This list probably contain spoilers)

Not only they learn how to walk with legs, but also how to swim in human form (Stitch Event)

It takes them time get used to breathe air properly, walking their first steps feel heavy and painful and some of them still feel uncomfortable in clothes (Floyd's Beans Camo story / Jade's School Uniform voice lines)

The black carriage that picks them up to go to NRC is an amphibious magic coach (Floyd's Ceremonial Robes voice line)

Merfolks and Humans are aware of each other but is extremely rare to encounter an actual merman on land (Magicam Monsters event)

They aren't afraid of each other anymore, since Ariel married Erik merfolks commonly come and go from land to sea(Some adults even own some stores on the shores) (Floyd's Beach Wear story)

The institution or land boot camp that train merfolks to became humans was founded canonically by Ariel. They need at least one month there to get used to their new body and how to eat our food correctly. Deep under water they only eat raw meat (Floyd's Beans Camo story / Jade's School Uniform story)

In there also teach them about the fauna on land by taking them to the zoo (Floyd Platinum Jacket story)

Merfolks also have passports once they live in human society (Floyd Platinum Jacket story)

They can turn into their true form willingly (Book 3 / Book 4 / Azul's Ceremonial Robes story / Vargas Camp event / Magicam Monsters event)

However they drink potions to keep their human form. Those are really expensive and if they forget to drink it in time they turn back into merman really slowly (Book 6 Riddle and Azul's tower)

The potion itself is paid by the school and currently they drink an experimental version that allows them to keep their human form for a week or two instead of a couple of days. And it taste awful (Book 6 Riddle and Azul's tower)

None of them have good eyesight: Azul mainly use only one par of glasses because it helps with the ''Business Style'' he's aiming for, and even if he can see pretty well without them the lenses are prescript just as his lab glasses (Trey's Halloween Dress story / Azul's Lab Coat voice lines) Jade roam around the school at night because he feel at ease in the dark (Ruggie's School Uniform story) Floyd is always amused of bright colored things because they looked really dark under the sea (Floyd's lab coat story)

Their skin in human form is really smooth. That's because they are cover by slime in their true form that keep their skin moist and soft (Azul's Ceremonial Robes story)

Octopuses are a pretty exotic race even between merfolks, they are way bigger that the common merman. They are slow, so they are usually targeted by predators but they also are brutally strong and are able to manipulate all their limbs freely (Book 3 / Book 4 / Book 6 / Happy Beans event / Vargas Camp / Azul's Beach Wear voice lines)

Halloween under water have very ominous and respectful traditions, way opposite that Halloween on land. There's haunted ships with ghost that lost their lives drowned, so they play music to calm their sorrows and loneliness. There's many pirate ghosts wandering on rotten ships that could actually harm young merfolks if they are not careful enough (Jade's Halloween Dress story / Floyd's Halloween Dress story)

The Coral Sea is a really small community and merfolks don't hesitate to eat each other in order to survive (Many hints said by the octatrio to mention here. And yes, Floyd WILL eat any student if he have to (Azul's Beach Wear voice lines))

They live under a Monarchy and the current prince is called Rielle. Is implied that the prince assist in the same elementary school that Azul, Jade and Floyd (Book 3) **( The 14 one doesn't mention all the times the tweels bully Azul by calling him slow because I will lost count) ______________ That's it for now, I will add more eventually but this ones are the ones I can remember now, feel free to tell me what did I miss~

[milleeeeeee]

headcanon: Pandora just randomly drops fun facts during a casual conversation

Great hall, breakfast:

Barty: What classes do we have today?

Evan: Potions and-

Pandora: did you know that some octopuses change colors when they are dreaming

Hogwarts Express:

Dorcas: -and that’s what i’ll be doing for the next few weeks

Pandora: whales sleep vertically

Slytherin common room:

The gang just chillin’:

Pandora: did you know that humans share almost 50% DNA with fungi and that we contract many of the same viruses as fungi

Barty:

Dorcas:

Evan:

Regulus:

Quidditch stands, during a game:

Everyone cheering for the final score:

Pandora: did you know that it’s the male seahorse that gives birth and not the female