Ommastrephidae is a family of squid containing three subfamilies, 11 genera, and over 20 species. They are widely distributed globally and are extensively fished for food. One species, Todarodes pacificus, comprised around half of the world's cephalopod catch annually.
Oegopsida is one of the two orders of squid in the superorder Decapodiformes, in the class Cephalopoda. Together with the Myopsina, it was formerly considered to be a suborder of the order Teuthida, in which case it was known as Oegopsina. This reclassification is due to Oegopsina and Myopsina not being demonstrated to form a clade.
Liguriella is a genus of glass squids, the genus is probably monotypic, the only species being Liguriella podophthalma. The other named species Liguriella pardus, which was described by S. Stillman Berry in 1916, is cited as a taxon inquirendum but it is suggested that there may be in fact more than one species and there are species yet to be described.
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. 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.
Liocranchia is a genus of glass squid from the family Cranchiidae. They are moderate-sized with a long, spindle-shaped mantle which tapers to a point at the rear and they can attain mantle lengths of 250 mm. The species in Liocranchia have a cosmopolitan distribution in tropical and subtropical oceans although it has been suggested that on especies, Liocranchia reinhardti is associated with land masses. In seas off Hawaii waters L. reinhardti undergoes vertical migrations while L. valdiviae occurs in deep water is sedentary. They are eaten by many oceanic predator species.
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.
Cephalopods, which include squids and octopuses, vary enormously in size. The smallest are only about 1 centimetre (0.39 in) long and weigh less than 1 gram (0.035 oz) at maturity, while the giant squid can exceed 10 metres (33 ft) in length and the colossal squid weighs close to half a tonne (1,100 lb), making them the largest living invertebrates. Living species range in mass more than three-billion-fold, or across nine orders of magnitude, from the lightest hatchlings to the heaviest adults. Certain cephalopod species are also noted for having individual body parts of exceptional size.
Galiteuthis armata, the armed cranch squid, is a large species of glass squid. It reaches a mantle length of 61 cm. The species is native to the Atlantic Ocean and has been recorded from Bermuda, Canada, Namibia, and Spain. Armed cranch squids often appear to have bloated bodies, short arms, with thin but muscular mantles. They also contain large buoyancy chambers.
Galiteuthis suhmi is a very rarely recorded species of mesopelagic to bathypelagic glass squid from the family Cranchiidae which has a circumglobal range in the subtropical to sub-Antarctic seas. It has a maximum recorded mantle length of 300mm to 400mm.
Alloteuthis subulata, the European common squid, is a species of squid in the family Loliginidae.
Brachioteuthis riisei, also known as the common arm squid, is a species of squid in the family Brachioteuthidae.
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.
Alloteuthis is a genus of squids from the pencil squid family Loliginidae which has been considered a subgenus of the genus Loligo but both molecular analyses and morphological-anatomical analyses support the separation of these two taxa.
Alloteuthis media, the midsize squid or little squid, is a species of squid in the family Loliginidae from the eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea. It is generally a by-catch species in trawl fisheries, although there is an active fishery in the western Mediterranean.
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.
Lolliguncula is a genus of squid from the family Loliginidae from the eastern Pacific and western Atlantic, known as brief squid. The genus is divided into two subgenera Lolliguncula and Loliolopsis. They are rather small squids with a maximum mantle length of 120mm, that inhabit shallow warm seas, although some species have been recorded in areas of low salinity. They are typified by having a short mantle, which is round at the posterior; and fins that are broader than long, but which have no posterior lobes. The males produce spermatophores with a long cement body and they lack a ventral crest on their hectocotylus. Their suckers have square teeth which ring the entire margin or are placed distally. The males do not have enlarged suckers on the left ventral arm. The tentacular club is expanded and contains suckers in four series. The two subgenera differ in the morphology of the hectocotylus.
Slosarczykovia is a monotypic genus of squid, its sole representative being Slosarczykovia circumantarctica. Slosarczykovia is placed in the family Brachioteuthidae.
Nematolampas regalis, the regal firefly squid is a small, little-known species of squid from the family Lycoteuthidae which is found in the subtropical South Pacific Ocean. This squid has a mantle length of 30mm. It may be sexually dimorphic, with the males possibly having very thin elongated arms III, which are increasingly thread like towards their tips, where they do not have any suckers. Arms II are "normal" and have suckers along their length. The third arms have a series of photophores along their length, and there is a small photophore located on each of the tips of arms I and II. The tentacles have two embedded photophores and the largest of the eye's photophores is in the centre. There is a pair of large photophores close to the tip of the mantle on the ventral side mantle, with no other photophores on the body except for a visceral photophore which is also near the tip. There is practically no tail.
Nototeuthis is a monotypic genus of squid, in the family Neoteuthidae. The only species in this genus is Nototeuthis dimegacotyle . This species is characterised by short tentacular clubs, less than 40% of the length of the mantle, and relatively long fins, which are approximately 60% of the mantle length. The tentacle clubs have two greatly enlarged suckers on distal portion of the manus, which distinguish N. dimegacotyle from other members of the Neoteuthidae. Few specimens of this species are currently known. Specimens have been collected from the south eastern Pacific Ocean, off Chile, between the Southern Subtropical and the Antarctic Polar frontal zones. This species is mesopelagic to bathypelagic and can be found from near the surface to a depth of ~500m.
The Antarctic flying squid is a species of squid from the subfamily Todarodinae of the family Ommastrephidae, a family of pelagic squid from the order Oegopsida. It has a circumglobal distribution in the seas around the lower latitudes of the Southern Oceans.
