Sepia bandensis or Sepia latimanus?

Joined
Oct 12, 2011
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14
I identified this cuttlefish from the Lembeh Strait, North Sulawesi, Indonesia, as Sepia bandensis (dwarf cuttlefish), but now I'm wondering if it's more likely Sepia latimanus (broadclub cuttlefish), or even something else. Any idea? Sorry, I'm not sure of the size, but the dead staghorn coral it's in puts it at perhaps 8-10cm. It kind of "blushes" red.

Video clips here.

cuttlefish.jpg
 
Hi Nick,
I just wanted to acknowledge you post and say thanks for all the videos you provide through YouTube. Sorry I can't help at all except to mention that often the eye pupil shape is helpful with cuttle ID or at least eliminating some species.
 
Thanks. That's really good info. I hadn't really noticed before but Sepia bandensis has a very distinct eye shape with a kind of "inlet" in the upper eyelid. My specimen doesn't have that at all. It has a kind of "horzizontal S" shape that isn't evident in most photos of Sepia latimanus, but there is just a hint of it in a few, so that's my "most likely" for now. Perhaps that "S" shape is a reaction to bright video lights, as opposed to momentary camera flashes.
 
I've now identified this as an undescribed "crinoid cuttlefish", Sepia sp., as seen at the bottom of p401 of "Tropical Pacific Reef Creature Identification" by Humann and Deloach. The eye shape and the dark/light pattern on the front of the lower arms are a match.
 

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