Squid ID?

Alright, Kat, I'll make a deal with you: I won't mention it, if you'll tell me whether or not the first arms of Moroteuthis are typically smaller than the rest.

Deal?

:roll:
 
Upvote 0
Fair enough.
I've just looked at ~8 Moroteuthis of varying species (and am fume-giddy to prove it), and in all but one (which may be new) the first arms are shorter than the rest, and range from marginally to significantly narrower.
There's my end of the bargain... now ix-nay on the air-hay uit-say.
Much obliged :wink:
 
Upvote 0
Tintenfisch said:
I've just looked at ~8 Moroteuthis of varying species (and am fume-giddy to prove it)...

FLASH:Epidemic of Squid Huffing Ravages Antipodean Youth

...and in all but one (which may be new) the first arms are shorter than the rest, and range from marginally to significantly narrower.

Thank you, Kat. Let us know about that odd Moro.

Since we can't see much of the tentacular clubs on the latest un-captioned squid, a positive ID can't be guaranteed per Kat and Steve's rules of engagement. I don't see any of the fleshy warts on the mantle that adorn Moroteuthis robsoni. M. robusta looks like a good, provisional bet.

There's a fine Japanese squid site, www.zen-ika.com, at which one can find integrated morphological briefs, distribution maps and (mostly) color photographs of the teuthids we've considered in this thread. Even for those of us who don't know the language, the site is easy to navigate and eminently user-friendly. Here's a link to their species index:

http://www.zen-ika.com/zukan/search-e.html

Clem
 
Upvote 0
Clem, an alternative identification could be a spent female Ancistroteuthis 'lichtensteinii' (also an onychoteuthid); it differs from Moroteuthis in being smooth skinned (there are other differences). The specimen does have a definite 'onychoteuthid' look to it.

Ancistroteuthis from New Zealand is quite small (not like this brute), but I think we'll find the New Zealand taxon to be new (true A. lichtensteinii is a reasonable-sized squid).
Cheers
O
 
Upvote 0
Ahh, thankee, Steve. The plot thickens.

Apart from the lack of a visible hectocylus, are there other, visual cues that shout "spent female?" If so, what are they? I've not a clue.
 
Upvote 0
Here are some nice squid beaks from Alaska. Two sets are identified, one is not:

http://marine.alaskapacific.edu/octopus/specimens/beaksquid.html

The identified specimens are from Berryteuthis magister, which reaches a maximum known ML (mantle length) of 25cm. The unidentified beak is twice as large as the Berryteuthis set; large squid in the Gulf of Alaska include Moroteuthis robusta(yawn), Taningia danae and Todarodes pacifica, with maximum MLs of 200cm, 140cm and 50cm, respectively.

Any champeen hoss-head beak-sifters out there? Ms. Bolstad?

:?:
 
Upvote 0
Click here to see what a Duke University research team described as, first, a "baby giant squid," and then later as "a normal squid." It is in fact a cirrate (finned) octopod. The Duke team doesn't provide the depth at which the photo was taken, but their group was performing mapping and sampling work of the Incipient Rift, a tectonic feature on the seafloor in the equatorial East Pacific. Dredged samples and photos were taken at an average depth of 3,000 meters.

:?:

Clem
 
Upvote 0
It is way hard to put a name on those things on the basis of a picture as most of the characters used to identify them aren't apparent.

What I will say is that it definitely is not Luteuthis, Opisthoteuthis or Cirroctopus, and that it is unlikely to be Cirroteuthis muelleri or Grimpoteuthis (both in the strictest of senses) - debate could wage here (unlikely, but not impossible - I'd say 40% likely to be, 60% unlikely). It doesn't leave many described genera (Cirrothauma, Stauroteuthis and Enigmatiteuthis [even though someone recently considered the latter a synonym of Grimpoteuthis, they NEVER looked at Type material - very poor systematics as far as science is concerned - it's like me a synonymising match- and cigarette boxes because I couldn't see past the fact that both were boxes]).

In the pic the eyes are discernible, but they're not 'normal-sized' by the looks of things; this makes it more like Cirrothauma, but the area is poorly sampled and there could be all manner of new species (and genera) in the region; I've seen pics of cirrates that do not fit into any known genus, so there is plenty left to describe/discover.

What does this thing eat? That looks pretty barren countryside down there.
 
Upvote 0

Shop Amazon

Shop Amazon
Shop Amazon; support TONMO!
Shop Amazon
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon and affiliated sites.
Back
Top