check this out - something big's cooking!!!

[Tintenfisch]

Gidday all, thought you might like to know that in doing our dissections today (about a ton of partially-defrosted Archis), in addition to getting wetter, slimier and smellier than anyone cares to imagine, we made a SPECTACULAR discovery at the end of the day. We've got a roll of film to develop and will be more explicit when you can see the photos for yourselves... but it's big, and it's beautiful, and you will be the first to hear the news.

 

[Colin]

In the meantime can we guess???????

Did you find a whale's beak in its stomach?

laughing at my own jokes again!

 

[tonmo]

...eagerly awaiting!

 

[rrtanton]

ohboyohboyohboy!

I bet I know what it was!

It was a giant squid!



Okay, so I don't know. But I bet it was really cool, so get that film developed already!

rusty

 

[Steve O'Shea]

....it is rather sensational news - the sort of thing you'd read about in the paper even .... and Col was surprisingly close, in the sense that this and the whale thread have something in common - but you'd not guess what - and we'll not say until we're 100% certain.

.....just itching to tell.... (pity there's not an 'itching' icon)

itching, itching, itching (III) - and it's not a rash
O

 

[Colin]

Okay Ive got it!!!!!!

The reason why Architeuthis is so big is because they are part of a symbiotic relationship with whales!

The whales pass their eggs to squid who carry them for the whales until they hatch... In return the squid get to eat some of them.

The reason why this happens is that whale's eggs are made of wood and float to the surface naturally but the squid as a host make sure they stay deep in the water column......

Close?

 

[Phil]

I'll cast my guess. I reckon you have found evidence for cannibalism amongst Architeuthis.

Either that or you have found either Glenn Millers or Capt. Nemo's head.

 

[corw314]

I'm not even gonna touch this!!!!

But I am anxiously awaiting the outcome!!!

I know........ya found Hoffman's remains!!!!!

Carol

 

[Fujisawas Sake]

Lemme guess... You found evidence that this beastie ate something from out of its range, huh? Something that is found either above or far below the Archi's usual range of travel?

And please don't tell me it was a copy of Ripley's "Believe it or Not"!

Sushi and Hakusan Sake,

John

 

[Tintenfisch]

Welllll... some good guesses here. I think the whale beaks one takes the cake for creativity...
We'll have the pictures back day-after-tomorrow, and all (or most) shall be revealed...

 

[rrtanton]

Day after tomorrow?!?!

Why...that's...Tuesday! Haven't you NuziLanders heard of one-hour-photo yet? Or digital photography? :P

I will be patient...I will be patient...

I'll just be over here...patiently checking airfares to Auckland...

rusty

 

[Phil]

I've got it! You've found half of the rudder of the 'Geronimo', that Jules Verne Trophy yacht.

Seriously looking forward to the photos!

 

[Steve O'Shea]

The most exciting, sensational, fantastical, stupendously magical, phenomenal discovery of the century will soon be revealed .......

Photos are in and get picked up morrow, and we're 100% certain that what we've got is way cool - we've just got to explain how it came about.

Itching, itching, itching ..... rash developing

(ps, re the 1 hour photo thing .... you know we're both temporarily unemployed don't you )

 

[Fujisawas Sake]

The most exciting, sensational, fantastical, stupendously magical, phenomenal discovery of the century will soon be revealed .......

Tintenfisch and Steve,

Hmm... Well, my experience has been that biologists don't use words like this unless they've found something BIG, and I do mean B I G. I mean "run outside naked screaming 'Eureka' to the heavens" big. I was thinking maybe you've found evidence of speciation in Architeuthis but even that isn't that unexpected... Something on the line of finding an ammonite, or discovering a new ORDER, like when entomologists discovered the new Order Mantophasmotodea last year or so. You've found something that will turn the Ceph world on its proverbial bum, haven't you?

Is it an ammonite? Are they still out there?

Sushi and Sake, and whatever they eat in New Zealand

John

 

[Fujisawas Sake]

P.S.

Oh, and my wife thinks maybe it was a French Fishing boat....