Sepiola atlantica | |
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Live specimen of Sepiola atlantica from the Belgian continental shelf. | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Mollusca |
Class: | Cephalopoda |
Order: | Sepiolida |
Family: | Sepiolidae |
Subfamily: | Sepiolinae |
Genus: | Sepiola |
Species: | S. atlantica |
Binomial name | |
Sepiola atlantica Orbigny, 1839 (in Férussac & Orbigny, 1834–1848) |
Sepiola atlantica, also known as the Atlantic bobtail, is a species of bobtail squid native to the northeastern Atlantic Ocean (65ºN to 35ºN), from Iceland, the Faroe Islands and western Norway to the Moroccan coast. There is a single record of this species from the Mediterranean Sea.
Both sexes of S. atlantica grow to around 21 mm (0.83 in) in mantle length.
The type specimen was collected in the Bay of Biscay and is deposited at the Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle in Paris.
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.
Hatchling
Preserved specimen
Sepiola atlantica appears on stamp FO 409 of the Faroe Islands