Sy Montgomery (author: Soul of an Octopus) and Warren Carlyle (founder of OctoNation) on friendly octopuses, the Mayor of Octopus City, and their top octopus secrets from their new book Secrets of the Octopus that accompanies the National Geographic TV series. Second of a two-part interview about the wild world of octopuses! “We’re in the age of octopus,” Sy Montgomery.

Shownotes:

2:28  How the books Secrets of the Octopus and Soul of the Octopus informed the TV series and vice versa.

4:10 How OctoNation raised the profile of octopus photographers and vice versa.

7:02 Favourite octopus secrets – more social than anyone imagines. “They certainly are not all solitary”.

8:30 Octopolis & Octlantis and the Mayor of Octopus City.

9:02 Octopus hunting with other species.

11:15 “I’m taking my vitamins because I want to be on this planet to learn more secrets of the octopus.” Sy Montgomery.

11:25 The tiny hairy octopus aka the Chewboctopus!

12:49  Hanging out with a hippo. “I always felt that animals were my people… I’ve always felt more at home with animals than with people.” Sy Montgomery.

14:54 Meeting an octopus at age 7 – Warren.

16:00 “We’re just a blip on the radar of life compared to the octopus.” Warren Carlyle.

17:54 The first time Sy saw an octopus.

18:25 “This is someone. It’s not someTHING. It’s someONE. And they are as curious about you as you are about them.” Sy Montgomery.

21:15 Sy Montgomery on meeting Athena the octopus.

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Warren Carlyle & Sy Montgomery.
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Sy Montgomery (Soul of an Octopus) and Warren Carlyle (founder of OctoNation) on octopuses taking over the media, the origins of OctoNation, why octopuses needed a publicist and some of the secrets of octopus from their new book Secrets of the Octopus that accompanies the National Geographic TV series. First of a two-part interview about all things octopus!

Shownotes:

0:01 Meet author Sy Montgomery.

0:13 Meet Warren Carlyle “the PR agent for the octopus.”

3:50 How Sy met Warren.

4:25 Warren’s journey from high fashion to the deep ocean.

5:32 The origins of OctoNation: “When the Beyonce of octopus people tells you to do something, you just do it.” – Warren Carlyle

6:41 Octopus used to be monsters!

10:06 “It’s the golden age for octopus appreciation. For octopus research. And I think this is a great opportunity for the ocean in general. What better ambassador can you imagine than somebody who’s got the equivalent of nine brains and eight arms.” – Sy Montgomery.

13:00 Octopuses can give themselves manicures… we kind of laid the red carpet for “My Octopus Teacher.”

14:57 The impact of OctoNation. “Appreciation for the octopus has just exploded.”

16:00 Sy: “They are not some slimy gross monster. They are super smart. They are superheroes with superpowers. And yet they are enough like us that you can be friends with an octopus.”

18:45 Sy: “We’re in the age of octopus.”

18:50 Warren: “The way that I view Sy… Sy has this insatiable desire to hang out with animals all the time… All OctoNation is is really a reflection of Sy’s light.”

23:47 The blanket octopus!

28:08 Connecting with National Geographic.

32:10 Octopus have their own hunting fish the way humans have hunting dogs!

Skaana podcasts connect you to news and experts and their discussions about environments, oceans, and orcas.
Warren Carlyle & Sy Montgomery.
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Cephalopod expert Danna Staaf (author of The Lady and the Octopus and Monarchs of the Sea) talks with Skaana host Mark Leiren-Young about the alien world of octopuses, the secret lives of squid and her two new books Nursery Earth: The Wondrous Lives of Baby Animals and the Extraordinary Ways They Shape Our World and The Lives of Octopuses and Their Relatives: A Natural History of Cephalopods. “They are definitely our fellow earthlings and some of the oddest ones we share the planet with.”

Shownotes:

3:20 Meet Danna Staaf. “They are extremely intelligent animals with extremely short life-spans.”

6:12 Meet Danna Staaf’s first pet octopus – Serendipity.

12:32 “There’s this tension between the alien and the familiar in them.” And octopus decor…

13:50 “They are definitely our fellow earthlings and some of the oddest ones we share the planet with.”

15:49 How and why cephalopods lost their shells.

22:15 The difference between octopus and squid. “Squid basically evolved for swimming and for speed.”

25:10 “Cephalopods are amazing.”

27:13 “These are real animals that inspired a lot of myths and legends.”

28:35 “Squid are like the protein bars of the oceans.”

31:30 Squid squads!

32:36 Baby animals doot doot doot doot – Danna Staff’s new baby book!

34:31 “At any given moment, most of the animals on earth are babies… I find all of them to be adorable in their own ways.”

41:20 Her favourite odd octopus facts… donut brains!

42:17 “I love asking what if questions about nature and about science.”

44:20 How humans are threatening octopuses and the health of the oceans.

Skaana podcasts connect you to news and experts and their discussions about environments, oceans, and orcas.
Danna Staff Author Photo_credit Josh Weaver
Danna Staff Author Photo – credit Josh Weaver
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