The Mastigoteuthidae, also known as whip-lash squid, are a family of small deep-sea squid. Approximately 20 known species in six genera are represented, with members found in both the mesopelagic and bathypelagic zone of most oceans. Originally described by Verill in 1881, it was later lowered by Chun (1920) to a subfamily (Mastigoteuthinae) of the Chiroteuthidae. However, Roper et al. (1969) raised it back to the family level, and this has not been changed since. The taxonomy of this family is extremely unstable, and there have been at times one genus, two genera and four subgenera(Salcedo-Vargas & Okutani, 1994), two genera and several 'groups', five genera and one species with an uncertain placement, or six genera.
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.
Idioteuthis okutanii is a species of whip-lash squid. Richard E. Young and Michael Vecchione consider I. okutanii to be a junior synonym of I. hjorti.
Idioteuthis tyroi is a species of whip-lash squid. It is known from a single paralarva of 15 mm mantle length (ML). The paralarva is unique in having expanded tentacular clubs, although few mastigoteuthids have described paralarvae.
Idioteuthis is a genus of whip-lash squid containing at least one species. Some teuthologists consider it synonymous with Mastigoteuthis, but genetics have confirmed the placement of this genus as distinct from all other genera in this family. The placement of Idioteuthis within the Mastigoteuthidae remains uncertain.
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.
Mastigoteuthis agassizii is a species of whip-lash squid. It is the type species of the genus.
Echinoteuthis atlantica is a species of whip-lash squid from the family Mastigoteuthidae. It occurs in the eastern North and South Atlantic Ocean. This squid is red in colour and similar to Echinoteuthis famelica of the Pacific but differs in having a well developed protective membrane on the tentacular club which is absent on E. famelica. The presence on this membrane on Echinoteuthis glaukopis from the Indian Ocean suggests that this may be a synonym of E. atlantica, in which case glaukopis has priority.
All cephalopods possess flexible limbs extending from their heads and surrounding their beaks. These appendages, which function as muscular hydrostats, have been variously termed arms, legs or tentacles.
Sepia zanzibarica, or the Zanzibar cuttlefish, is a species of cuttlefish native to the Indian Ocean.
Cirroteuthis muelleri is one of the largest cirrate octopuses, growing to a length of 1.5 metres (4.9 ft). It is the only species of the genus Cirroteuthis.
A sucker in zoology refers to specialised attachment organ of an animal. It acts as an adhesion device in parasitic worms, several flatworms, cephalopods, certain fishes, amphibians, and bats. It is a muscular structure for suction on a host or substrate. In parasitic annelids, flatworms and roundworms, suckers are the organs of attachment to the host tissues. In tapeworms and flukes, they are a parasitic adaptation for attachment on the internal tissues of the host, such as intestines and blood vessels. In roundworms and flatworms they serve as attachment between individuals particularly during mating. In annelids, a sucker can be both a functional mouth and a locomotory organ. The structure and number of suckers are often used as basic taxonomic diagnosis between different species, since they are unique in each species. In tapeworms there are two distinct classes of suckers, namely "bothridia" for true suckers, and "bothria" for false suckers. In digeneal flukes there are usually an oral sucker at the mouth and a ventral sucker posterior to the mouth. Roundworms have their sucker just in front of the anus; hence it is often called a pre-anal sucker.
Loliolus is a genus of squid from the family Loliginidae from the Indo-Pacific region. The genus is divided into two subgenera Loliolus and Nipponololigo. They are small squids of less than 150mm in mantle length which have an expanded tentacular club. This club has 4 series of suckers. The sucker rings have plate-like teeth which are square in shape all around them. The males' hectocotylus has a ventral crest which is created by the fusion of the protective membrane with the ventral series of papillae and this crest completely obscures the conical shape of the papillae. The mantle is rounded posteriorly and lacks the posterior tail-like lobe while the fins are positioned on the rear of the mantle and extend to the posterior tip of the mantle. Their eggs are small and the males' spermatophore has a short cement body. They do not possess photophores. The two subgenera are distinguished by the hectocotylus which in Loliolus encompasses the entire arm and there are no unmodified suckers while in Nipponololigo the arm is only partly hectocotylsed and has normal suckers at its base.
Madoka Sasaki was a Japanese zoologist, who is known for his work on the cephalopods of Japan, as well as other groups such as salamanders. Sasaki was Professor of Zoology in the Fishery Department of the College of Agriculture at Tohoku Imperial University, Sapporo, Japan. Sasaki died in 1927 and his major work A monograph of the dibranchiate cephalopods of the Japanese and adjacent waters was published posthumously in 1929, and was based largely on his studies of the cephalopod collections of the Zoology Department of the "Tokyo University Museum", many of which he collected himself. The species Sebastodes sasakii, Octopus sasakii and Sepia sasakii are among the taxa that bear names that honour Sasaki.
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.
Ornithoteuthis volatilis, the shiny bird squid, is a squid from the subfamily Ommastrephinae, the flying squids, of the family Ommastrephidae part of the pelagic squid order Oegopsida. It is a tropical and sub-tropical species which is widely distributed in the Indo-Pacific oceans. It is slightly larger than the closely related species Ornithoteuthis antillarum of the Atlantic Ocean.
Opisthoteuthis albatrossi is a cirrate octopus originally found off Kinkasan in Japan. This species was described from only four specimens. It is similar to Opisthoteuthis californiana; the two may be the same species. It is also similar to Opisthoteuthis japonica.
Opisthoteuthis depressa is an octopus found in waters near Japan.
Opisthoteuthis extensa is a species of octopus found off the west coast of Sumatra, an Indonesian island. It lives at a recorded depth of 768 m (2,520 ft). O. extensa lives in a benthic habitat, like many other cirrate octopuses. It occupies a deep part of the ocean where little sunlight penetrates.
Opisthoteuthis grimaldii is an octopus found near the Azores.
Oral view of arm suckers
Oral view of tentacular club suckers
