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Common cuttlefish

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This article is about the European common cuttlefish. For the South African common cuttlefish, seeSepia vermiculata.

Common cuttlefish
Common cuttlefish inArrábida Natural Park,Portugal
Scientific classificationEdit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Cephalopoda
Order: Sepiida
Family: Sepiidae
Genus: Sepia
Subgenus: Sepia
Species:
S. officinalis
Binomial name
Sepia officinalis
Synonyms
  • Sepia rugosaBowdich,1822
  • Sepia vicelliusGray, 1849
  • Sepia zebrinaRisso, 1854
  • Sepia filliouxiLafont, 1869
  • ?Sepia fischeriLafont, 1871
  • Sepia officinalis mediterraneaNinni, 1884
  • ?Sepia veranyiP. FischerinLagatu, 1888

Thecommon cuttlefishorEuropean common cuttlefish(Sepia officinalis) is one of the largest and best-knowncuttlefishspecies. They are a migratory species that spend the summer and spring inshore for spawning and then move to depths of 100–200 metres (330–660 ft) during autumn and winter.[2]They grow to 49 centimetres (19 in) inmantlelength and 4 kilograms (8.8 lb) in weight.[3]Animals from subtropical seas are smaller and rarely exceed 30 centimetres (12 in) in mantle length.[4]

The common cuttlefish is native to at least theMediterranean Sea,North Sea,andBaltic Sea,although subspecies have been proposed as far south asSouth Africa.It lives on sand and mud seabeds and it can tolerate brackish water conditions.[5][6]

Taxonomy

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It is unknown where thetype specimenofS. officinaliswas collected, as the location is given simply as "Oceano". It is deposited in theLinnean Society of London.[7]

Sepia officinalis jurujubaiOliveira, 1940,originally described as asubspeciesof the common cuttlefish, is ajunior synonymofSepioteuthis sepioidea.[8]

Description

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Thecuttleboneof a cuttlefish. This is the largesthard partof a cuttlefish, maintaining the rigidity of its body.

The common cuttlefish is one of the largest species of cuttlefish with amantle lengthreaching up to 45 cm and amassof 4 kg on a presumed male, although this is for an exceptional specimen in temperate waters; specimens in subtropical waters rarely surpass a mantle length of 30 cm and 2 kg in mass. The mantle houses the reproductive and digestive tracts of the cuttlefish and is also home to an internal shell called thecuttlebone,located on thedorsal sideof the animal.[2]The common cuttlefish has two highly developed eyes, eight arms which are located around the mouth and are used to hold and manipulate prey, two specializedfeeding tentacleswhich are used toambushprey, and abeakhousing aradulaused inbreaking down and consumingtheir (often armored) prey.[9]Cuttlefish move by undulating fins on the periphery of their mantle, but when startled they often jet away using asiphon,inking in the process.

Cuttlefish are well known for their unmatchedcamouflagingabilities which are possible due a variety of specialized cells; pigmentedchromatophoreorgans, light scattering leucophores, and structurally reflecting iridophores in theirskinwork in concert to conceal the cuttlefish in its environment.[10]They not only are able to swiftly change their colour and patterns, but can also use peripheralmusclesto change thetextureof their skin. Their camouflaging abilities are categorized into four main types including mottle, stipple, uniform, and disruptive.[11]Cuttlefish possess these camouflaging abilities from before hatching; a cuttlefish can visibly manipulate its chromatophores from within its clear-membraned egg.[12]

Ecology

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The common cuttlefish is a relatively large,shallow waterdemersal,ambush-huntingcoleoid.

Diet

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During the day, most cuttlefish can be found buried below the substrate and fairly inactive. At night however, they are actively searching for prey and can ambush them from under the substrate.[citation needed]Cuttlefish are carnivorous and eat a variety of organisms including crustaceans (crabsandshrimp), small demersal fish, molluscs (clamsandsnails), and sometimesother cuttlefishwhich is more commonly seen when the abundance of other prey is low.[9]

A 2008 study onS. officinalis[13]revealed that cuttlefish embryos, if visually exposed to a certain species of prey (e.g.crabs), will hunt primarily for that prey in later life.S. officinalisusually prefer shrimp to crabs, but when the embryos were exposed to crabs and the embryos had hatched, the young cuttlefish switched preferences and proceeded to hunt the crabs more often than the shrimp.[14]

Life history

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The male cuttlefish (right) solicits the female formating.

Cuttlefish reach sexual maturity between 14 and 18 months of age. During breeding season, which occurs during spring, summer, and sometimes early autumn, large gatherings of male cuttlefish willdisplaya highlycontrastingblack and whitezebra patternon their mantle to attract females and females will display a uniform grey colour to indicate they are ready to mate. Cuttlefish males carry up to 1400spermatophoresto the female and the female carries between 150 and 4000 eggs depending on her body mass. The female attach the egg mass to seaweed, shells, or other substrates to prevent them from drifting away; the eggs incubate for 30 or 90 days, depending on temperature, until they hatch into miniature versions of the adults. Cuttlefish live up to 2 years of age; alarge number of them die after spawning.[2][1][15]

Cuttlefish have many predators includingsharks,coastaldolphins,seals,large fish such assparids,andcephalopodswhich includesother cuttlefish.They have a number ofanti-predator adaptations;their primary means is camouflage, sitting concealed while a predator passes them by. If located, a cuttlefish will jet away using its siphon, and will often ink; a cuttlefish has avariety of ink types that it can use depending on its situation.[9][16][1][15]

The egg masses of the common cuttlefish are also attacked and consumed by predators; an experiment determined that a variety of marine invertebrates, including themurex sea snails,european lobster,rock crabs,sea urchins,Squilla mantis,andsea starsate common cuttlefish egg masses.[17]

Uses

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Linguinedyed with cuttlefish ink

Sepia officinalisis a species that is commonly fished in the Mediterranean, including countries like Greece and Spain. Although it is fished extensively and wild stocks in some regions are close to being over-exploited, population numbers are not declining and the species is of Least Concern on the list of threatened species.[1]Cuttlefish in general have many uses, thus they have a large commercial value.Sepia officinalisis a popular food item in its native range, and mediterranean languages have numerous names for cuttlefish.[15][18]The mantle is the main cut eaten; it is processed into a multitude of dishes after the cuttlebone and guts are removed. The head including the tentacles are also processed into a variety of dishes; thebuccal massincluding the beak are often removed beforehand.[citation needed]

Cuttlefish inkis believed to have many beneficial health effects includinganti-inflammatory,anti-oxidant,antimicrobial,anti-hypertensive,anti-retroviral,and potentialanticancerproperties.[19]The ink itself is aningredient in food, staining the dish to a deep black coloration.Another common use for cuttlefish ink is as a pigment; the colorsepiais named after the common cuttlefish, and it is extracted from its ink sac.[19]

Cuttlebones are commonly sold forpetparrotsbecause they provide a good source of calcium, help keep a bird's beak trimmed, improve jaw strength, and provide entertainment for the bird.[20]Some reptile species may also take cuttlebones for calcium and enrichment.[citation needed]

See also

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References

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  1. ^abcdBarratt, I.; Allcock, L. (2012)."Sepia officinalis".IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.2012:e.T162664A939991.doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2012-1.RLTS.T162664A939991.en.Retrieved12 November2021.
  2. ^abcCompton, A; Wiley, L."Sepia officinalis".Animal Diversity Web.Retrieved20 March2018.
  3. ^Reid, A., P. Jereb, & C.F.E. Roper (2005). "Family Sepiidae". In P. Jereb & C.F.E. Roper, eds.Cephalopods of the world. An annotated and illustrated catalogue of species known to date. Volume 1. Chambered nautiluses and sepioids (Nautilidae, Sepiidae, Sepiolidae, Sepiadariidae, Idiosepiidae and Spirulidae).FAO Species Catalogue for Fishery Purposes. No. 4, Vol. 1. Rome, FAO. pp. 57–152.
  4. ^Roper C.F.E., M.J. Sweeney & C.E. Nauen (1984).Cephalopods of the world.Food and Agriculture Organization, Rome, Italy. Vol. 3, p. 277.
  5. ^Helmut Debelius (1994).Marine Atlas: The Joint Aquarium Care of Invertebrates and Tropical Marine Fishes.Vol. 3. Mergus. p. 798.ISBN9783882440553.
  6. ^"Ecology Summary -Sepia officinalis".sealifebase.ca.Retrieved10 December2023.
  7. ^Current Classification of Recent Cephalopoda
  8. ^Adam, W. & W.J. Rees. 1966. A Review of the Cephalopod Family Sepiidae.John Murray Expedition 1933–34, Scientific Reports11(1): 1–165, 46 plates.
  9. ^abc"Sepia officinalis,The Common Cuttlefish – The Cephalopod Page ".www.thecephalopodpage.org.Retrieved2018-03-20.
  10. ^Mäthger, L.M.; Chiao, C.C.; Barbosa, A.; Hanlon, R.T. (March 2008). "Color matching on natural substrates in cuttlefish,Sepia officinalis".Journal of Comparative Physiology.194(6): 577–585.doi:10.1007/s00359-008-0332-4.PMID18414874.S2CID25111630.
  11. ^Kelman, E.J.; Baddeley, R.J.; Shohet, A.J.; Osorio, D. (2007)."Perception of visual texture and the expression of disruptive camouflage by the cuttlefish,Sepia officinalis".Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B: Biological Sciences.274(1616): 1369–1375.doi:10.1098/rspb.2007.0240.PMC2176201.PMID17389219.
  12. ^Hanlon, R.T.; Messenger, J.B. (1988)."Adaptive coloration in young cuttlefish (Sepia officinalisL.): The morphology and development of body patterns and their relation to behaviour ".Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B.320(1200): 437–487.Bibcode:1988RSPTB.320..437H.doi:10.1098/rstb.1988.0087.
  13. ^Darmaillacq, Anne-Sophie; Lesimple, Clemence; Dickel, Ludovic (2008). "Embryonic visual learning in the cuttlefish,Sepia officinalis".Animal Behaviour.76:131–134.doi:10.1016/j.anbehav.2008.02.006.S2CID53147763.
  14. ^Walker, M. (June 5, 2008).Cuttlefish spot target prey early.BBC News.
  15. ^abc"Species Fact SheetsSepia officinalis(Linnaeus, 1758) ".Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.Food and Agriculture Organization.Retrieved15 October2023.
  16. ^"Sepia officinalis".Animal Diversity Web.Retrieved2018-03-20.
  17. ^Martins, Catarina P.P.; Fernández-Álvarez, Fernando Á.; Villanueva, Roger (2018). "Invertebrate predation on egg masses of the European cuttlefish,Sepia officinalis:An experimental approach ".Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science.200:437–448.Bibcode:2018ECSS..200..437M.doi:10.1016/j.ecss.2017.11.016.hdl:10261/130843.
  18. ^Sykes, A.V; Oliveira, A.R; Domingues, P.M; Cardoso, C.M; Andrade, J.P; Nunes, M.L (2009). "Assessment of European cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis,L.) nutritional value and freshness under ice storage using a developed Quality Index Method (QIM) and biochemical methods ".LWT – Food Science and Technology.42:424–432.doi:10.1016/j.lwt.2008.05.010.
  19. ^abDerby, Charles D. (2014-05-12)."Cephalopod Ink: Production, Chemistry, Functions and Applications".Marine Drugs.12(5): 2700–2730.doi:10.3390/md12052700.PMC4052311.PMID24824020.
  20. ^Sund, P (2017)."Does My Bird Really Need a Cuttlebone?".

Further reading

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