It's amazing... tree octopi sighted!

Did you know there is such a creature as a tree octopus? It is highly endangered and very rare but there have been a few sightings, especially along the Pacific coast of Washington state in the United States.

See the link below for recent sightings, with pictures taken:

http://zapatopi.net/treeoctopus/sightings.html

An American environmental group, Zapatopi, is campaigning to save this unusual animal and needs our help. Here is some information on it:

The Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus

Kingdom: Animalia

Location found: Washington State, USA

You will find the Pacific Northwest Tree Octopi high in the trees of Washington State's Olympic National Forest. They spend their early lives in the water of Puget Sound, but as they mature they move upwards, adopting an arboreal existence. They use their eight arms to swing from branch to branch, as well as to grab small prey such as insects and frogs. During their mating season they return to the water, but soon after resume their life in the forest.

The tree octopus population is under great pressure from the encroachments of the modern world: logging, roads, pollution, and overhunting by trappers eager to sell the octopuses as ornamental decorations for hats. As a result, the species is close to extinction. The Save the Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus Organization has long been attempting to raise awareness of this animal and its plight. They urge concerned citizens to write to their congressional representative about this problem.

---------------------------------------------------------------

Meanwhile, today being April Fool's Day, a news website, Bioscholar.com, in its April 1, 2011 edition, has this story:

A new study has suggested that April Fool's tricks like sitting on a whoopie cushion or hot sauce in your food, are an opportunity to improve your health. Laughter can be very beneficial for your vascular health, reports Fox News.

“Laughter increases blood flow and improves the function of blood vessels,” said Vivienne Halpern, from the Society for Vascular Surgery. “Reducing stress is especially beneficial for persons who have hypertension (high blood pressure),” she said.

Stress and high blood pressure can have detrimental effects on the body. The combination of pressure at work, financial issues, and personal or relationship problems can all raise blood pressure and cause hypertension, and even cardiovascular disease.

Studies have shown that a good laugh on a regular basis can even help prevent you from getting sick.

“Laughter reduces the level of stress hormones (cortisol, epinephrine, dopamine, and growth hormone) and increases the level of health-enhancing hormones (endorphins and neurotransmitters),” said Halpern.

“This can result in a stronger immune system and fewer physical effects of stress,” she added.

---------------------------------------------------------------

Okay, now that you have come to this part of today's blog posting, please note (if you have not already guessed it) that THE ABOVE STORY ABOUT TREE OCTOPI IS A HOAX!! It first surfaced in 1998 but, amazingly, people still fall for it, so much so that the hoax website -- with intentional giveaway clues that no such creature exists -- is still being updated for "sightings". See Wikipedia below for the truth:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pacific_Northwest_tree_octopus