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Onychoteuthis compacta (Berry, 1913)

Michael Vecchione, Richard E. Young, and Kotaro Tsuchiya
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Containing group: Onychoteuthis

Introduction

O. compacta appears to be the most common of the three species of Onychoteuthis found in Hawaiian waters. It is most easily identified by characteristics of its pigment pattern. Juveniles and subadults have a distinctive region on the posteroventral surface of the mantle that lacks chromatophores.

Characteristics

  1. Tentacular club
    1. Club without marginal suckers in subadults.
    2. Distal 4 or 5? fully-formed hooks in ventral series with spikes (see arrow) that protrude through the skin.
      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 views of tentacular club of O. compacta. Top - Original drawing by Keiko Hiratsuka Moore, National Marine Fisheries Service. Distal portion of club showing hook spikes (arrow), preserved. Photograph by R. Young.

      Scanning electron micrographs of the hooks can be seen here.

  2. Head
    1. Beaks: Descriptions can be found here: Lower beak; upper beak.

  3. Mantle pigmentation
    1. Triangular-shaped region on the postero-ventral mantle lacks chromatophores.
      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. Ventrolateral view of the mantle of O. compacta, preserved, showing pigmentation, Hawaiian waters. Photograph by R. Young.

Comments

Additional features of the description can be found here.

Life History

Paralarvae of O. compacta are easily identified by the arrangement of their chromatophores. At 3-4 mm GL: A simple band (i.e., a single, straight line) of chromatophores is present along the free ventral margin of the mantle; a group of chromatophores is situated well posteriorly on the ventral mantle and two large chromatophores are located ventrally opposite the fins. At 6 mm GL: Two pairs of chromatophores are present on the ventral mantle adjacent to the fins. A small patch of chromatophores is present dorsally at the posterior convergence of the fins. At 9 mm GL: Two parallel rows of small chromatophores are located dorsally stradling the midline of the mantle. At 12-16 mm ML: Chromatophore numbers increase dramatically. At 18 mm ML: The subadult chromatophore pattern can be recognized.

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. Ventral and dorsal views of paralarval and juvenile O. compacta. A - 2.3 mm GL. B - Ventral view of a common condition in this species: head retracted within the mantle cavity, 4.8 mm GL. C - 4.1 mm GL. D - 8.9 mm GL. E - 18.5 mm GL. The bar is 1 mm. Drawings from Young and Harman (1985).

Distribution

Until recently, known only from the Central Pacific, primarily 30°N–30°S; Bolstad (2010) reported additional material from the western north-central Atlantic, primarily 0–40°N.  Probably worldwide in tropical to warm temperate oceans. Depth distribution unknown; majority of specimens collected at surface.

References

Berry, S. S. 1913. Some new Hawaiian cephalopods. Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus. 45: 563-566.

Bolstad, K.S.R. 2010. Systematics of the Onychoteuthidae Gray, 1847 (Cephalopoda: Oegopsida). Zootaxa, 2696: 186 pp.

Kubodera, T., U. Piakowski, T. Okutani and M. R. Clarke. 1998 Taxonomy and zoogeography of the family Onychoteuthidae. Smiths. Contr. to Zoology, No. 585: 277-291.

Young, R. E. and R. Harman. 1985. Descriptions of the larvae of three species of the Onychoteuthis banksii complex from Hawaiian waters. The Veliger, 29: 313-321.

Title Illustrations
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Click on an image to view larger version & data in a new window
Scientific Name Onychoteuthis compacta
Location Hawaiian waters
Creator Keiko Hiratsuka Moore
Acknowledgements National Marine Fisheries Service
View Ventra, dorsal
Image Use creative commons This media file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License - Version 3.0.
Copyright ©
Scientific Name Onychoteuthis compacta
Location Hawaiian waters
Specimen Condition Live Specimen
View Dorsal
Copyright © M. Seki
About This Page


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


University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI, USA


Tokyo University of Fisheries, Tokyo, Japan

Page: Tree of Life Onychoteuthis compacta (Berry, 1913). Authored by Michael Vecchione, Richard E. Young, and Kotaro Tsuchiya. 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:

Vecchione, Michael, Richard E. Young, and Kotaro Tsuchiya. 2010. Onychoteuthis compacta (Berry, 1913). Version 23 December 2010 (under construction). http://tolweb.org/Onychoteuthis_compacta/19964/2010.12.23 in The Tree of Life Web Project, http://tolweb.org/

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