Book Review - Octopuses & Their Relatives: A Natural History of Cephalopods - Princeton University Press

 

     I suspect that for many, their only association with cephalopods, until recently, was the calamari on their plate. That seems to have changed in recent years and there is an emerging fascination with octopuses and squid. This transformation seems to have occurred with Sy Montgomery's book The Soul of an Octopus, published in 2015. Popular media interest and You Tube videos have followed. 

     In fact, there is much to garner attention about these ancient creatures, and Donna Staaf has written a very fine book about these intelligent and interesting inhabitants of the oceans of the world. They vary in size from tiny organisms that can squeeze into a discarded snail shell, to giant squid 13 metres long. Gigantism has always fascinated humans, and awed and terrified us too, so it is not surprising that many lurid tales have been written about predatory octopuses victimizing innocent humans and dragging ships to a watery doom.

     The truth is that cephalopods are beautiful creatures, capable of instant camouflage in many species, and occupying different zones of the ocean, preying on some fellow inhabitants and providing food for others. Albatrosses, for example, are almost totally dependent on squid for their survival. Many cetaceans cover huge distances to feed on squid.

     The book covers every habitat where cephalopods may be found - Beaches, Tidepools, Sandflats and Mudflats; Seagrass Beds, Kelp Forests and Rocky Reefs; Coral Reefs; Open Ocean; Midwater; Deep Sea; Antarctica and the Arctic. As you might expect, over such a diversity of habitats there are myriad anatomical and behavioural adaptations, all of which are covered in exquisite detail in the book.

     The science is explained in an easily comprehensible form, and if you have never had even a passing acquaintance with biology or physics, you will have no difficulty absorbing it all, and getting caught up with the exquisiteness of creatures you had perhaps not thought about before.

     Detailed species accounts provide essential information, a range map and a glorious full colour picture. In fact the entire book, page after page, is populated with stunning photographs, some so incredible you wonder how they were ever taken.

     It distresses me that with every account of the natural world today one cannot ignore the sinister and increasingly unconscionable outcomes humans are having on the planet. Predatory fishing practices, both legal and illegal, decimate species, with disgraceful "by catch" of organisms other than those that are the targets of long lines, and trawl nets that could envelop cities. The ocean floor is dragged beyond recognition and the unique and irreplaceable biosphere for benthic organisms is destroyed. Nets and other gear (ghost gear) discarded by trawlers consign numerous species, including mammals as large as whales to a slow, lingering death. Plastic pollution continues to rain down on the oceans with no end in sight. Currently there are plans afoot to mine the oceans and drill for oil. Staaf does not shy away from these issues and what, when all is said and done, is the complete lack of willingness to tackle the problems. If you think for a moment of the catastrophic consequences of poaching on land, just imagine the virtual impossibility of controlling or eliminating it on the high seas. And we haven't even touched on the warming of the oceans....

      This is a really excellent book. Please take the time to read it and get to know some of Planet Earth's most absorbing creatures. You'll be glad you did.

Niggly bits -

Page 20 - "First defiuite ceph fossil" - I assume this should read "First definite cephalopod fossil."

Page 13 - Staaf says, "I'm contractually obligated to take a stand on plurals.......squid and cuttlefish tend to be their own plurals." On page 28 she then talks of glass squids and on page 154 of Oegopsid squids. Squid is used everywhere else in the book.

Page 59 - "This works excellently on smooth glasl" should obviously say "smooth glass.

The Lives of Octopuses and Their Relatives: A Natural History of the Cephalopods - Princeton University Press

Danna Staaf

Hardcover - US$35.00 - ISBN: 9780691244303

288 pages - 7.5 x 9.5 inches (18.75 x 23.75 cm)

150+ colour illustrations

Publishing date: 19 September, 2023