Helicocranchia pfefferi

Last updated

Banded piglet squid
Helicopfefferidraw2.jpg
Ventral view of a specimen taken off Southern California (41 mm ML)
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Cephalopoda
Order: Oegopsida
Family: Cranchiidae
Subfamily: Taoniinae
Genus: Helicocranchia
Species:
H. pfefferi
Binomial name
Helicocranchia pfefferi
Massy, 1907 [2]
Synonyms

Helicocranchia beebei Robson, 1948

Helicocranchia pfefferi, the banded piglet squid, is a small squid of the genus Helicocranchia . Adults of this species are mesopelaegic.

Contents

Physical characteristics

The average size of adult H. pfefferi is 100 mm (3.9 in) in mantle length (ML). The body consists of a large funnel with small paddle-like fins. They have small tentacles above their eyes. The funnel does not have valves, but contains a dorsal pad with three papillae as organs.[ citation needed ] Paddle-shaped fins are attached to a part of the gladius. H. pfefferi has a single ocular photophore and does not have photophores at its arm tips.

Habitat

As paralarvae (<30 mm ML), they live near the surface of the oceans, between 100 m and 200 m deep. They descend to the mesopelagic zone as they mature, but exhibit a diel vertical migration pattern. [3]

Related Research Articles

<i>Spirula</i> Species of cephalopod known as the rams horn squid

Spirula spirula is a species of deep-water squid-like cephalopod mollusk. It is the only extant member of the genus Spirula, the family Spirulidae, and the order Spirulida. Because of the shape of its internal shell, it is commonly known as the ram's horn squid or the little post horn squid. Because the live animal has a light-emitting organ, it is also sometimes known as the tail-light squid.

<i>Ancistrocheirus</i> Genus of squids

Ancistrocheirus lesueurii, the sharpear enope squid, is the only species in the genus Ancistrocheirus and family Ancistrocheiridae. With a mantle length of 25 cm (9.8 in), this moderately sized squid may be found throughout the tropical and subtropical oceans. They tend to be found at mesopelagic depths.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taoniinae</span> Subfamily of squids

Taoniinae is a subfamily containing ten genera of glass squids.

<i>Helicocranchia</i> Genus of squids

Helicocranchia is a genus of small glass squids from the family Cranchiidae, known as piglet squid. They are characterized by possessing a very large funnel and in having a pair of small paddle-like fins which are attached to a part of the gladius which sits above the muscular mantle. These squid undergo a slow descent starting near the surface as paralarvae moving down to lower mesopelagic depths as near-adults.

<i>Bathothauma lyromma</i> Species of squid

Bathothauma lyromma, the lyre cranch squid, is a highly modified species of glass squid from the family Cranchiidae with a distribution which encompasses most of the world's oceans from the tropics to high latitudes.

<i>Sandalops melancholicus</i> Species of squid

Sandalops melancholicus, the sandal-eyed squid or melancholy cranch squid, is a small species of glass squid. It is known to reach a mantle length of 11 cm (4.3 in). It is distributed in the tropical and subtropical oceans around the world. It is the only species in the genus Sandalops but some authorities suggest that this may be a species complex rather than a monotypic genus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spined pygmy shark</span> Species of shark

The spined pygmy shark is a species of squaliform shark in the family Dalatiidae found widely in all oceans. Growing no larger than roughly 28 cm (11 in), it is one of the smallest sharks alive, with this record beaten by the dwarf lanternshark. This shark has a slender, cigar-shaped body with a sizable conical snout, a long but low second dorsal fin, and an almost symmetrical caudal fin. Its sister species S. aliae and it are the only sharks with a spine on the first dorsal fin and not the second. Spined pygmy sharks are dark brown to black, with numerous bioluminescent organs called photophores on their ventral surface. The shark is believed to use these photophores to match ambient light conditions, which break up its silhouette and help the shark to avoid being seen by predators below.

<i>Australiteuthis</i> Genus of squids

A. aldrichi is a small species of squid found in northern Australian waters. The species was described by Chung Cheng Lu in 2005 based on specimens collected in the inshore waters of Northern Australia. The largest known individual of this species is a mature female measuring 27.6 mm (1.09 in) in mantle length (ML). The holotype is a mature male of 21.3 mm (0.84 in) ML. A live specimen of A. aldrichi has yet to be recorded. A. aldrichi is a member of the class Cephalopoda and part of the subclass Coleodia. Within this class there are two orders, the Myopsida and Oegopsida, which both fall under the superorder Decapodiformes. A. aldrichi falls under the order of Myospida, and is the only member of its genus, Australiteuthis, and family, Australiteuthidae.

<i>Idioteuthis cordiformis</i> Species of mollusc

Idioteuthis cordiformis is a species of whip-lash squid found in tropical regions of the west Pacific Ocean. The species is commonly known as the 'love-heart squid' because the species name cordiformis is Latin for 'heart shaped'. Recently, this species has been found to consume small birdbeak dogfish.

Mastigopsis is a genus of whip-lash squid containing one single species, Mastigopsis hjorti. Some teuthologists consider Idioteuthis synonymous with this taxon; however, genetic results indicate that this genus is not closely related with Idioteuthis but actually closer to Magnoteuthis.

<i>Pterygioteuthis giardi</i> Species of squid

Pterygioteuthis giardi is a species of squid in the family Pyroteuthidae. It is known as the roundear enope squid. The specific name honors the French zoologist and marine biologist Alfred Mathieu Giard (1846-1908).

<i>Abraliopsis morisii</i> Species of mollusc

Abraliopsis morisii is a species of bioluminescent squid in the family Enoploteuthidae. The species occurs in tropical to warm temperate waters in the Atlantic Ocean, including the Gulf of Mexico and the Mediterranean Sea. It can be found in the epipelagic and mesopelagic zones. Jean Baptiste Vérany described the species in 1839 and it reaches lengths of 25 to 33 millimetres. It is rated as least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neon flying squid</span> Species of squid

The neon flying squid, sometimes called the red flying squid, akaika, and red squid is a species of large flying squid in the family Ommastrephidae. They are found in subtropical and temperate oceanic waters globally.

<i>Heteroteuthis dispar</i> Species of mollusc

Heteroteuthis dispar, also known as the odd bobtail, is a small deep water squid found in the North Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea.

<i>Illex coindetii</i> Species of squid

Illex coindetii, commonly known as the southern shortfin squid or broadtail shortfin squid, is a species of neritic squids in the family Ommastrephidae. They are found in the Mediterranean Sea and on both sides of the north Atlantic Ocean.

<i>Teuthowenia megalops</i> Species of squid

Teuthowenia megalops, sometimes known as the Atlantic cranch squid, is a species of glass squid from the subarctic and temperate waters of the northern Atlantic Ocean. They are moderately sized squid with a maximum mantle length of 40 cm (16 in). Their very large eyes are the source for the specific name megalops. Like other members of the genus Teuthowenia, they are easily recognizable by the presence of three bioluminescent organs (photophores) on their eyeballs.

<i>Galiteuthis glacialis</i> Species of squid

Galiteuthis glacialis is a species of glass squid from the Antarctic Convergence. It is in the cranchiidae family and subfamily taoniinae. They are endemic to the Antarctic and are found in the Southern Ocean, around the Weddell Sea and the South Shetland Islands. Galiteuthis glacialis are one of the most plentiful and widely dispersed species of Antarctic squid. These squids are found in the mesopelagic and bathypelagic layers of the open ocean and demonstrate vertical migration. They can reach a maximum mantle length of 500 mm (0.5m).

<i>Histioteuthis heteropsis</i> Species of squid

Histioteuthis heteropsis, also known as the strawberry squid, is a species of small cock-eyed squid. The scientific nomenclature of these squid stems from their set of differently sized eyes, one being small and blue and the other being large and yellow. It is thought that the large eye is used to see objects against dim light, while the smaller eye is more able to view bioluminescent light sources. The squid's vernacular name arose due to its rich red skin pigmentation and the presence of photophores along its body, making it appear like a strawberry with seeds.

<i>Sthenoteuthis oualaniensis</i> Species of squid

The purpleback flying squid or purpleback squid is a species of cephalopod in the family Ommastrephidae, occurring in the Indo-Pacific. It is considered one of the most abundant large squids.

Eucleoteuthis is a monotypic genus of squid from the family Ommastrephidae; the only species is Eucleoteuthis luminosa, the striped flying squid or luminous flying squid.

References

  1. Barratt, I.; Allcock, L. (2014). "Helicocranchia pfefferi". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2014: e.T162906A951921. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2014-1.RLTS.T162906A951921.en . Retrieved 20 November 2021.
  2. Julian Finn (2016). "Helicocranchia pfefferi Massy, 1907". World Register of Marine Species. Flanders Marine Institute. Retrieved 1 March 2018.
  3. Lu, C.C. & M.R. Clarke (1975). "Vertical Distribution of Cephalopods at 11° N 20° W in the North Atlantic". Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom. 55 (2): 369–389. doi:10.1017/S0025315400016003. S2CID   250946620.

Prey

Its diet resembles that of most squid: fish, shrimp, and squid.