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Discoteuthis sp. B

Richard E. Young and Michael Vecchione
Containing group: Discoteuthis

Introduction

A single badly damaged immature male squid (NMNH no. 815487) taken in the Atlantic Ocean at 08°11'S, 14°12'W appears similar to D. laciniosa judging from the funnel locking apparatus. Most characteristics that would confirm the identification have been lost. However a portion of one tentacular club remains and the large suckers have an unusual dentition.

Diagnosis

A Discoteuthis ...

Characteristics

  1. Tentacles
    1. Largest suckers of manus with numerous (ca. 40), pointed teeth around entire margin of inner ring.
    2. Click on an image to view larger version & data in a new window
      Click on an image to view larger version & data in a new window

      Figure. Oral view of the club manus of Discoteuthis sp. B showing the largest suckers of the club. Note that one large sucker is missing. Photograph by R. Young.

      Click on an image to view larger version & data in a new window
      Click on an image to view larger version & data in a new window

      Figure. Oral view of a portion of the sucker ring of a large manus sucker of Discoteuthis sp. B. Photograph by R. Young.

Comments

The strikingly different dentition of the manus suckers could indicate that either (1) this is a different species from those previously described, or (2) males of D. laciniosa have a different dentition than females, or (3) there is more intraspecific variation in sucker dentition of D. laciniosa than previously thought. We have made no attempt to describe more details of the badly damaged specimen. Our objective is simply to point out an inconsistency in our understanding of Discoteuthis.

About This Page


University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI, USA


National Museum of Natural History, Washington, D. C. , USA

Page: Tree of Life Discoteuthis sp. B. Authored by Richard E. Young and Michael Vecchione. The TEXT of this page is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License - Version 3.0. Note that images and other media featured on this page are each governed by their own license, and they may or may not be available for reuse. Click on an image or a media link to access the media data window, which provides the relevant licensing information. For the general terms and conditions of ToL material reuse and redistribution, please see the Tree of Life Copyright Policies.

Citing this page:

Young, Richard E. and Michael Vecchione. 2019. Discoteuthis sp. B. Version 26 March 2019 (temporary). http://tolweb.org/Discoteuthis_sp._B/57150/2019.03.26 in The Tree of Life Web Project, http://tolweb.org/

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Discoteuthis sp. B

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