One of my favorite critters to photograph is a cephalopod (octopus, squid, and cuttlefish). And, with my 2017 goal to learn more / study the critters I photograph, I thought it would be fun to tie the two together. So, for every day in February, I chose one cephalopod interaction, logged it on iNaturalist, and then wrote up a detailed post with the information. Then, I posted it to facebook / instagram / twitter; it was great fun! But, a bit more work than I expected.  

To complete the entire process, I've now added all of the high-res images - with their details, their iNaturalist observation link, plus additional references - on BlueWaterImages. In a few cases I've also uploaded multiple versions of the shots because I've been printing some square metal images and I love what you can do with these around the house (making "tile" patterns, etc.).

So... here's a quick log of the critters by day as well as a short "Ripl" (video) of the top 8 (by Instagram likes).

Feb 1: Coconut octopus (Amphioctopus marginatus)

Coconut Octopus vs. A Single Scallop Shell (1 of 3)Coconut octopus (Amphioctopus marginatus) Coconut Octopus vs. A Single Scallop Shell (1 of 3)Coconut octopus (Amphioctopus marginatus) Coconut Octopus vs. A Single Scallop Shell (1 of 3)<strong>Coconut octopus (Amphioctopus marginatus)</strong>

Feb 2: Another coconut octopus (Amphioctopus marginatus)

Scallop Shell Testing (1 of 3)Coconut octopus (Amphioctopus marginatus)

Scallop Shell Testing (2 of 3)Coconut octopus (Amphioctopus marginatus)

Scallop Shell Testing (3 of 3)Coconut octopus (Amphioctopus marginatus) Date taken: December 22, 2016 at 6:16pm Dive site: Aeprang 1. Lembeh Strait, Indonesia

Feb 3: Well... I was on a bit of a coconut octopus craze (Amphioctopus marginatus)

The Curly Coconut OctopusCoconut octopus (Amphioctopus marginatus)

Feb 4: OK, well, at least I'm consistent! Yes, another coconut octopus craze (Amphioctopus marginatus)

Coconut Octopus and Unworthy Scallop Shells (1 of 4)Coconut octopus (Amphioctopus marginatus)

Coconut Octopus and Unworthy Scallop Shells (2 of 4)Coconut octopus (Amphioctopus marginatus)

Coconut Octopus and Unworthy Scallop Shells (3 of 4)Coconut octopus (Amphioctopus marginatus)

Coconut Octopus and Unworthy Scallop Shells (4 of 4)Coconut octopus (Amphioctopus marginatus)

Feb 5: OK, well, I couldn't end my coconut octopus craze without showing one in a coconut (Amphioctopus marginatus). And, this one is with her brood of eggs too.

Dedicated MommaCoconut octopus (Amphioctopus marginatus)

Feb 6: Broadclub cuttlefish (Sepia latimanus)

Sparkly Broadclub Cuttlefish - Eye See You!Broadclub cuttlefish (Sepia latimanus)

Feb 7: Bigfin reef squid (Sepioteuthis lessoniana)

Beautiful Bigfin Reef SquidBigfin reef squid (Sepioteuthis lessoniana) Date taken:September 3, 2014 at 6:48pm Dive site: Cheeky Beach (one of our FAVORITE dive sites in the WORLD!!), Buton Area (SE Sulewesi), Indonesia

Feb 8: Berry's bobtail squid (Euprymna berryi)

Blue Berry's Bobtail SquidBerry's bobtail squid (Euprymna berryi)

Feb 9: Blue-ringed octopus (Hapalochlaena lunulata)

Blue Rings in FlightBlue-ringed octopus (Hapalochlaena lunulata)

Feb 10: This was one of my favorite days... I was able to find a video of the first time I fell in love with a cephalopod; specifically, a Hawaiian day octopus. In this case, this video is from just after I received my Advanced Open Water certification. I was in Kona, Hawaii. 

Hawaiian Day OctopusDive site: Turtle pinnacle Kona, Hawaii

Feb 11: a still of a Hawaiian day octopus (Octopus cyanea)

Paul's PresentHawaiian Day Octopus (Octopus cyanea)

Feb 12: Caribbean reef octopus (Octopus briareus)

Caribbean Reef Octopus in Flight (1 of 3)Caribbean reef octopus (Octopus briareus) Date taken: May 25, 2010 at 8:46pm Dive site: Lea Leas Lookout (Bloody Bay Wall) on Little Cayman, Cayman Islands

Caribbean Reef Octopus in Flight (2 of 3)Caribbean reef octopus (Octopus briareus) Date taken: May 25, 2010 at 8:46pm Dive site: Lea Leas Lookout (Bloody Bay Wall) on Little Cayman, Cayman Islands

Feb 13: Broadclub cuttlefish (Sepia latimanus)

Coral CuttleBroadclub cuttlefish (Sepia latimanus) Date taken: January 14, 2012 at 8:31am Dive site: Bird Wall, Waigeo Island, N. Raja Ampat, Indonesia

Feb 14: Dwarf cuttlefish (Sepia bandensis)

A Tiny CuttleDwarf cuttlefish (Sepia bandensis) Date taken: January 14, 2012 at 8:33am Dive site: Bird Wall, Waigeo Island, N. Raja Ampat, Indonesia

Feb 15: Blue-ringed octopus (Hapalochlaena lunulata)   [NOTE: I skipped Feb 15 and "made-up" this day on Mar 1]

Blue-ringed ChillBlue-ringed octopus (Hapalochlaena lunulata) Date taken: September 15, 2015 at 3:28pm Dive site: Punta in Dauin, Negros Oriental, Philippines while diving with the Atlantis Resort

Feb 16: Mimic octopus (Thaumoctopus mimicus)

Magical Mimic Octopus - Arms Wide OpenMimic octopus (Thaumoctopus mimicus)

Magical Mimic Octopus - I'm not an octopus!Mimic octopus (Thaumoctopus mimicus)

Magical Mimic Octopus - Back to the BurrowMimic octopus (Thaumoctopus mimicus)

Feb 17: Wunderpus (Wunderpus photogenicus)

Wonderful WunderpusWunderpus (Wunderpus photogenicus)

Feb 18: Algae octopus (Abdopus aculeatus)

Algae OctopusAlgae octopus (Abdopus aculeatus)

Feb 19: Pfeffer's Flamboyant cuttlefish (Metasepia pfefferi)

Dazzling Flamboyant CuttlefishPfeffer's flamboyant cuttlefish (Metasepia pfefferi)

Feb 21: Mototi octopus (Amphioctopus siamensis)

Hard-coral Cover Close-UpMototi octopus (Amphioctopus siamensis)

Feb 22: Broadclub cuttlefish (Sepia latimanus)

The Colorful Life of a Broadclub Cuttlefish (1 of 3)Broadclub cuttlefish (Sepia latimanus)

The Colorful Life of a Broadclub Cuttlefish (2 of 3)Broadclub cuttlefish (Sepia latimanus)

The Colorful Life of a Broadclub Cuttlefish (3 of 3)Broadclub cuttlefish (Sepia latimanus)

Feb 23: Broadclub cuttlefish couple (Sepia latimanus)

Cuttlefish CoupleBroadclub cuttlefish (Sepia latimanus) Date taken: January 20, 2012 at 7:43am Dive site: Magic Mountain, South Raja Ampat, Indonesia

Feb 24: Dwarf cuttlefish (Sepia bandensis)

Dwarf cuttlefishDwarf cuttlefish (Sepia bandensis) Date taken: January 21, 2012 at 8:23am Dive site: Algae Patch 2, Batanta Island, N. Raja Ampat, Indonesia

Feb 25: Starry night octopus (Callistoctopus luteus)

Starry Night OctopusStarry night octopus (Callistoctopus luteus) Date taken: January 18, 2016 at 7:18pm Dive site: Our favorite in Lembeh - Jahir 1, Lembeh Strait, Indonesia

Starry Night OctopusStarry night octopus (Callistoctopus luteus) Date taken: January 18, 2016 at 7:18pm Dive site: Our favorite in Lembeh - Jahir 1, Lembeh Strait, Indonesia

Starry Night OctopusStarry night octopus (Callistoctopus luteus) Date taken: January 18, 2016 at 7:18pm Dive site: Our favorite in Lembeh - Jahir 1, Lembeh Strait, Indonesia

Starry Night OctopusStarry night octopus (Callistoctopus luteus) Date taken: January 18, 2016 at 7:18pm Dive site: Our favorite in Lembeh - Jahir 1, Lembeh Strait, Indonesia

Feb 26: Longarm octopus (Octopus defilippi)

Lanky Longarm after Earthquake (1 of 2)Longarm octopus (Octopus defilippi) Date taken: December 14, 2006 at 3:58pm Dive site: Black Magic, Sangeang Island, Flores Region, Indonesia

Feb 27: Bigfin reef squid (Sepioteuthis lessoniana)

The Most Uncommon Bigfin Reef SquidBigfin reef squid (Sepioteuthis lessoniana) Date taken: August 8, 2013 at 9:06pm Dive site: Garden Eel Cove, Kona, Hawaii

The Most Uncommon Bigfin Reef Squid Bigfin reef squid (Sepioteuthis lessoniana) Date taken: August 8, 2013 at 9:09pm Dive site: Garden Eel Cove, Kona, Hawaii

Feb 28: ME! OK, I had to have a bit more fun at the end of the month... so, I posted this image. 

This is a drawing done by the creative and clever Jonathan Crow 
* Website: http://www.jonathan-crow.com/ 
* Twitter: https://twitter.com/jonccrow 
* Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/veeptopus/ 
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Background: In October 2016, I learned about a wildly wierd and wonderful series of paintings - each displaying a US Vice President with an octopus on their head. Obviously, I had to learn more. Well, there was a Kickstarter for a book and I just had to support it. Jonathan certainly explains it better but it resulted in Veeptopus! And, it boils down to "Odd Art for Odd People" and well... I couldn't resist.
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I backed his Kickstarter campaign to receive a book and at the level I chose, I also was to receive my own painting... of you guessed it ME WITH AN OCTOPUS ON MY HEAD. Seriously, there was no way I could resist that. And, this is the absolutely fantastic result.
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This makes me sooooo happy!

And that's a WRAP for February...

Or, so you thought... you might have noticed that I missed Feb 20?! So, I decided I needed another make-up day. I thought I'd add a few details behind the photos that inspired the artwork that Chris Thompson has done on my lower right leg (this is always the one I enter the water with; this is my way of having some extra good cephalopod juju ;-)...

Finally, I created a little video based on the votes on instagram (as of March 3). Check it out:

Thanks so much for checking out these images! You can also find me on facebook | twitter | instagram and I hope to hear from you soon.

Thanks for reading,
Kimberly