Vote for BP.Net for the 2013 Forum of the Year! Click here for more info.

» Site Navigation

» Home
 > FAQ

» Online Users: 2,966

1 members and 2,965 guests
Most users ever online was 6,337, 01-24-2020 at 04:30 AM.

» Today's Birthdays

None

» Stats

Members: 75,031
Threads: 248,489
Posts: 2,568,446
Top Poster: JLC (31,651)
Welcome to our newest member, isismomma
Results 1 to 1 of 1
  1. #1
    Bogertophis's Avatar
    Join Date
    04-28-2018
    Location
    USA
    Posts
    20,183
    Thanks
    28,085
    Thanked 19,740 Times in 11,797 Posts

    Octopus ancestors lived before era of dinosaurs, study shows

    Who knew?

    https://apnews.com/article/science-t...66c1bb14d79cb3

    Octopus ancestors lived before era of dinosaurs, study shows


    By CHRISTINA LARSONyesterday




    FILE - An octopus swims at the zoo in Frankfurt, Germany on Friday, Nov. 25, 2005. In research published Tuesday, March 8, 2022, in the journal Nature Communications, scientists have described the oldest known fossil ancestor of octopuses – an approximately 330 million-year-old specimen found in Montana. (AP Photo/Bernd Kammerer, File)



    WASHINGTON (AP) — Scientists have found the oldest known ancestor of octopuses – an approximately 330 million-year-old fossil unearthed in Montana.
    The researchers concluded the ancient creature lived millions of years earlier than previously believed, meaning that octopuses originated before the era of dinosaurs.
    The 4.7-inch (12-centimeter) fossil has 10 limbs — modern octopuses have eight — each with two rows of suckers. It probably lived in a shallow, tropical ocean bay.
    “It’s very rare to find soft tissue fossils, except in a few places,” said Mike Vecchione, a Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History zoologist who was not involved in the study. “This is a very exciting finding. It pushes back the ancestry much farther than previously known.”
    The specimen was discovered in Montana’s Bear Gulch limestone formation and donated to the Royal Ontario Museum in Canada in 1988.
    ADVERTISEMENT





    For decades, the fossil sat overlooked in a drawer while scientists studied fossil sharks and other finds from the site. But then paleontologists noticed the 10 tiny limbs encased in limestone.



    The well-preserved fossil also “shows some evidence of an ink sac,” probably used to squirt out a dark liquid cloak to help to evade predators, just like modern octopuses, said Christopher Whalen, an American Museum of Natural History paleontologist and co-author of the study published Tuesday in the journal Nature Communications.
    The creature, a vampyropod, was likely the ancestor of both modern octopuses and vampire squid, a confusingly named marine critter that’s much closer to an octopus than a squid. Previously, the “oldest known definitive” vampyropod was from around 240 million years ago, the authors said.
    The scientists named the fossil Syllipsimopodi bideni, after President Joe Biden.
    Whether or not having an ancient octopus — or vampire squid — bearing your name is actually a compliment, the scientists say they intended admiration for the president’s science and research priorities.
    ___
    The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
    Last edited by Bogertophis; 03-09-2022 at 02:11 PM.
    Rudeness is the weak man's imitation of strength.
    Eric Hoffer (1902 - 1983)

  2. The Following 3 Users Say Thank You to Bogertophis For This Useful Post:

    Albert Clark (03-09-2022),Homebody (03-09-2022),richardhind1972 (03-09-2022)

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  
Powered by vBadvanced CMPS v4.2.1