Ocythoe tuberculata
| Tuberculate pelagic octopus | |
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| Specimen preserved in formaldehyde | |
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| Scientific classification | |
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| Family: | Ocythoidae Gray, 1849
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| Genus: | Ocythoe Rafinesque, 1814
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| Species: | O. tuberculata
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| Binomial name | |
| Ocythoe tuberculata Rafinesque, 1814
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Ocythoe tuberculata, also known as the tuberculate pelagic octopus or football octopus, is a pelagic octopus. It is the only known species in the family Ocythoidae.
Ocythoe tuberculata is found in warm and temperate seas, especially in the Northern Hemisphere, such as the North Pacific Ocean off California.
Description
The females are around 1 metre (3.3 ft) long when full-grown. The males are considerably smaller at around 10 centimetres (3.9 in).
As a species, they are unique among cephalopods in possessing a true gas bladder [citation needed]. They are also one of the only known ovoviviparous cephalopod species. It is relatively unresearched in terms of behaviour and life cycle.
Young females and mature males have been observed residing inside salps, although little is known about this relationship.
Gallery
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Male with attached hectocotylus that has broken free from its sac.
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Cut-away drawing of the viscera.
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Details of the hectocotylus.
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O. tuberculata paralarva.
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3D red cyan glasses are recommended to view this image correctly.External links
- "CephBase: Ocythoe tuberculata". Archived from the original on 17 August 2005.
- Tree of Life web project: Ocythoe tuberculata
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