Octopods

The next part of my jewellery update. This started off as an experiment with the oval shaped beads, but I really like how they came out!

 



The beads are glass and the eyes are made from hematite. These little guys are super cute and every one is unique as the tentacles are always different!

I couldnt decide between pendants and earrings, so I'm going with both. Earrings are £12.50, and pendants are £6.99. If you dont want one in red or blue, let me know, and I'll see if I can get hold of the beads in different colours for you!

So, in honour of my new octopus-themed jewellery, this blog post is all about cephalopods!

A group of octopus is called a consortium. The correct version of the plural is either octopuses or octopodes, with octopi being incorrect as the word does not have a latin origin.

Octopuses have three hearts; two of which pump blood through the gills and another which pumps blood to the rest of the body.

In our blood cells we have haemoglobin as the oxygen carrying molecule, which is stored in our red blood cells. Octopuses, however, use haemocyanin dissolved in the blood plasma (the liquidy stuff which blood cells are found in), and this makes the blood appear blue.

Octopuses are very intelligent creatures, and are the only invertebrates which have been observed to use tools.

This one can use a rubiks cube, which instantly makes it more intelligent than me. I cant solve them at all :(

 

Although several species of octopus are venomous, the only one which is deadly to humans is the blue ringed octopus:

 

 

Octopuses are poorly represented in the fossil record as their bodies are almost entirely made up of soft tissues which decompose very quickly after death. The precise conditions needed for a fossil to form are rare - no scavengers, anoxic conditions (lack of oxygen which would prevent bacterial action) and rapid sedimentation rate (the body is buried quickly). However, fossils have been found.

 

 

This specimen is around 95 million years old, and shows very little difference to modern octopuses. Due to the extreme rarity of fossils, the evolutionary history of these animals is unknown.

 

I hope you like the new jewellery!

 

Even if the morrow is barren of promises, nothing shall forestall my return...

 

Becky x