Animal Species:Pencil Squid – Photololigo etheridgei
The Pencil Squid forms the basis of valuable local and commercial fisheries throughout South-east Asia.
Identification
Photololigo etheridgei is an elongate squid, typically covered in red or orange spots. They also possess a pair of light organs inside the mantle, one on each side of their ink sac. Their internal shell (gladius) is long and thin.
Size range
Body up to 30cm.
Similar Species
Molecular studies of the group Photololigo have suggested that there may be many species treated under a single species name.
Classification
- Species:
- etheridgei
- Genus:
- Photololigo
- Family:
- Loliginidae
- Order:
- Teuthida
- Subclass:
- Coleoidea
- Class:
- Cephalopoda
- Phylum:
- Mollusca
References
Norman, M & A. Reid., (2000) A Guide to Squid, Cuttlefish and Octopuses of Australasia, CSIRO Publishing, Victoria (Collingwood)
Allison Runck
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