Recently, the news of octopus discovered to be an alien made rounds on the web, freaking out netizens all over the world. A furious science writer stepped up to clarify misconceptions.
It is a scientific fact that octopuses are extraordinary creatures. They successfully mimic other creatures by altering their skin color and pattern. The most recent research published in Nature aims to dig deeper into the complexity of this creature, Jolene Creighton wrote on From Quarks to Quasars.
According to Creighton, the recent research shows the widespread genomic rearrangements that took place over the course of the organism's evolutionary history. The study claims that the evolution of the octopus genome was probably driven by the expansion of a few specific gene families, systemic genome shuffling, and the appearance of novel genes.
Creighton concludes that while the study highlights that the octopus is very unique, it remains related to the mollusks. Evolution is a scientific fact. The process of evolution may give way to extremely unusual genetic combination that materializes into very creatures.
Octopuses are Just Odd
While it is now clear that octopus did not hail from outer space, they remain stunning.
Octopuses are exceptionally capable animals. They can also unscrew themselves out of a sealed jar and use coconut shells to build mobile homes.
The octopus genome displays a striking level of complexity with 33,000 protein-coding genes identified, which is a lot more than humans. Their central nervous system is absolutely different from other creatures. Like other invertebrates, its central brain surrounds its esophagus. However, the creature's brain is exceptionally large and it also has groups of neurons in its arms that can work autonomously.
The creature possesses three hearts and prehensile sucker-lined tentacles. It also has huge, highly mobile, camera-like eyes sensitive to polarized light. They are capable of jet-propulsion and regenerating severed limbs.