Octopuses, Cuttlefish, Hellish Vampires. 500 Million Years of Cephalopod History

The book by marine biologist Danna Stoeff focuses on a topic that does not receive much attention in popular science literature, namely the evolution and biology of unique marine invertebrates – cephalopods. These creatures, which appeared at the dawn of multicellular life, spawned a multitude of diverse forms, gained a dominant position in ancient seas, survived several mass extinctions, including the Great Permian Extinction that wiped out 96% of marine animal species, and have persisted to the present day in the form of such intelligent, complex animals as octopuses, squids, and cuttlefish.