| Sepiola atlantica | |
|---|---|
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| Live specimen of Sepiola atlantica from the Belgian continental shelf. | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Cephalopoda |
| Order: | Sepiida |
| Family: | Sepiolidae |
| Subfamily: | Sepiolinae |
| Genus: | Sepiola |
| Species: | S. atlantica |
| Binomial name | |
| Sepiola atlantica | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Sepiola atlantica, also known as the Atlantic bobtail, is a species of bobtail squid native to the northeastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea.
Sepiola atlantica has short fins which do not overlap the mantle margin either anteriorly or posteriorly. The four arms have two series of suckers close to the body and 4 to 8 rows of minute suckers toward their tips. The remaining arms have two rows of suckers. A hectocotylus is present, the left dorsal arm is modified, the near end has a fleshy pad which is formed from enlarged and fused sucker pedicels with the copulatory apparatus being a large swollen horn, which has secondary lobes at its base; the dorsal row of suckers which are placed tword the tip from the copulatory apparatus has 3 or 4 slightly enlarged suckers with swollen pedicels, 3 or 4 vestigial suckers, then 3 to 5 greatly enlarged suckers roughly halfway along arm. The hectocotylised arm is strongly bent towards its tip. The tentacular club has transverse rows of 8 suckers. There is a pair of kidney-shaped photophores within the mantle cavity, one on each side of the animal's ink sac. Both sexes of S. atlantica grow to around 21 mm (0.83 in) in mantle length. [3]
Sepiola atlantica has a latitudinal range from 65ºN to 35ºN, ranging from Iceland, the Faroe Islands and western Norway in the north south to the Moroccan coast. There is a single record of this species from the Mediterranean Sea, a mature male caught in the Tyrrhenian Sea at a depth of 90m. [3] The type specimen was collected in the Bay of Biscay and is deposited at the Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle in Paris. [4]
Sepiola atlantica is a small species which occurs in a variety of marine habitats extending from shallow water to the upper slope of the continental shelf. It is a benthic species but it has been recorded from the water column during both day and night. Like many species in the family Sepiolidae, S. atlanticus possesses a light organ which may be used to countershade the animal. The mature males have a fleshy bulb and enlarged suckers on the distal end of the left first arm. In Firemore Bay, Loch Ewe, off the coast of Scotland spawning appears has been recorded as occurring throughput the year, peaking in April and again in July to August. Related species of bobtail squid are benthic animals that typically hide by burying themselves in soft substrates in daytime, and then at night they emerge to feed. [1] The resident population of Firemore Bay has a variable age composition, further suggesting that this species has an extended reproductive season. At this site juveniles are recorded throughout the year, however recruitment of juveniles into the population shows peaks in April and July to August. [3]
During mating, the male typically approaches the female, grasping the ventral region of the female's mantle while using the dorsal arm to transfer the spermatophores to the female's mantle cavity. Mating typically lasts from 68 to 80 minutes. During this time, the female may change in color or pattern, while the male's coloration generally stays constant. [5]
Metasepia pfefferi, also known as the flamboyant cuttlefish, is a species of cuttlefish occurring in tropical Indo-Pacific waters off northern Australia, southern New Guinea, as well as numerous islands of the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia.
Sepietta oweniana is a common marine mollusc from the order Sepiida, the cuttlefish.
Sepiola rondeletii, also known as the dwarf bobtail, is a species of bobtail squid native to the northeastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, including the Strait of Sicily, Aegean Sea, Adriatic Sea, Sea of Marmara, and Levantine Sea. In the northeastern Atlantic, its natural range extends from the North Sea to Senegal. Females grow to 60 mm in mantle length, while males are not known to exceed 25 mm ML.
Sepiola aurantiaca, also known as the golden bobtail squid, is a rare species of bobtail squid native to the northeastern Atlantic Ocean. It ranges from southern Norway to the western Mediterranean Sea. S. aurantiaca occurs on the outer continental shelf and in the upper bathyal zone. The depth range of this species is possibly from 200 to 400 m.
Sepiola knudseni is a species of bobtail squid native to the eastern Atlantic Ocean, specifically northwest and west Africa, from the Canary Islands to the Gulf of Guinea. It lives on the inner continental shelf. S. knudseni lives at depths of 32 to 90 m.
Sepiola pfefferi is a species of bobtail squid native to the northeastern Atlantic Ocean. Specifically, it occurs on the continental shelf off the Faroe Islands and from southern Norway to Brittany in France. The depth range of this species is unknown.
Sepiola rossiaeformis is a species of bobtail squid native to the Indo-Pacific. Its exact range is unknown.
Sepiola steenstrupiana, also known as Steenstrup's bobtail, is a species of bobtail squid native to the Gulf of Aden in the Red Sea, waters off Somalia, and the Mediterranean Sea, including the central Tyrrhenian Sea, the Adriatic Sea, the Aegean Sea, and the Levantine Sea.
Inioteuthis japonica is a species of bobtail squid native to the western Pacific Ocean, specifically the waters off China, Taiwan, and southern Japan.
Rossia pacifica diegensis is a subspecies of bobtail squid native to the eastern Pacific Ocean off Santa Catalina Basin, California. It occurs at greater depths than its sister taxon R. p. pacifica.
Rossia palpebrosa, also known as the warty bobtail squid, is a species of bobtail squid native to the northern Atlantic Ocean.
Idiosepius minimus is a species of bobtail squid native to the "coast of Africa" where it occurs in shallow, inshore waters. Specimens collected under the junior synonyms I. biserialis and I. macrocheir were described from Mozambique. Since then, the further collecting effort off Mozambique has seen additional specimens gained. As a result it has been inferred that this species has a relatively restricted distribution since Idiosepius has not been recorded elsewhere in Africa.
Sepioloidea pacifica, also known as the Pacific bobtail squid, is a species of cuttlefish native to the southern Pacific Ocean; it occurs off New Zealand in the west and in the Nazca and Sala y Gomez submarine ridges in the east.
Euprymna berryi, commonly called hummingbird bobtail squid or Berry's bobtail squid among various other vernacular names, is a species of mollusc cephalopod in the family Sepiolidae.
Sepia elegans, the elegant cuttlefish, is a species of cuttlefish in the family Sepiidae from the eastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. It is an important species for fisheries in some parts of the Mediterranean where its population may have suffered from overfishing.
Neorossia caroli, the Carol bobtail squid, is a species of bobtail squid belonging to the family Sepiolidae.
Euprymna morsei, the Mimika bobtail squid, is a species of Indo-Pacific bobtail squid from the family Sepiolidae.
Afrololigo mercatoris, commonly known as the Guinean thumbstall squid, is a small species of squid in the family Loliginidae from the eastern central Atlantic Ocean. It is the only species in the monotypic genus Afrololigo.
Rossia is a genus of 10 species of benthic bobtail squid in the family Sepioidae found in all oceans. They live at depths greater than 50 m (164 ft) and can grow up to 9 cm in mantle length. This genus was first discovered in 1832 by Sir John Ross and his nephew James Clark Ross in the Arctic Seas, showing a resemblance to another genus under the same family, Sepiola. After returning from their expedition, Sir Richard Owen officially classified Rossia to be a new genus, naming it after Sir John and James Clark Ross.
