Cephalopod Behaviour

by Roger Hanlon, John B. Messenger

There are about 700 species of cephalopods (including the cuttlefishes, squids, octopods, and the chambered nautilus) living throughout the seas of the world. They are considered to be the most highly evolved marine invertebrates and possess elaborate sense organs, large brains and complex behavior. This book examines such behavior, summarizing field and laboratory data from a wide variety of sources in the first comprehensive account of the life of cephalopods in their natural habitats. This book surveys the way cephalopods find prey and escape predators, how they reproduce, how they learn, and how they communicate using complex body patterns. Throughout, the volume emphasizes the gaps in our knowledge in the hope of stimulating more biologists to study these beautiful and fascinating animals. Researchers in animal behavior, marine biology, and neuroscience will find the subject matter especially appealing.

Genres: Science, Nonfiction, Nature, Earth, Biology

256 pages, Paperback

First published June 28, 1996

Reviews

[Melanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book really isn't for everyone. Only the seriously interested in cephalopods should attempt to read it. But if you are interested in cephs and you have a good scientific background, there's a ton of interesting information in here. These are fascinating animals and the more you know about them, the more fascinating they are. Who knew that nautilus have 90 tentacles? Who knew that along with their obvious chromatophores, cephalopods also have reflecting cells and all kinds of interesting bioluminescence? But there is so much that isn't known! At least according to this book that was last updated in 2002. Makes me wonder how much new information is available.