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Cuttlefish

Page history last edited by Amanda Routtenberg 12 years, 1 month ago

  

  Cuttlefish

By Amanda Routtenberg

 

               Description:

      Cuttlefish are colour-blind marine animals in the Cephalopodan classification, which include all animals who have large heads, complex eyes, numerous tentacles and some have the ability to camouflage.  Cuttlefish fits into this classification because they have eight arms, two tentacles and w-shaped pupils. These animals also have two denticulated suckers, which help them secure their prey. Cuttlefish vary between the sizes of 15 to 25 centimeters, which is 5.9 to 9.8 inches.  The average Cuttlefish’s preys are small mollusks, crabs, shrimp, fish, octopuses, worms, and other cuttlefish. Their predators include dolphins, sharks, fish, seals, seabirds, and other cuttlefish. This aquatic creature lives for approximately 1 or 2 years. The fact that their brain is much bigger than their body size (brain-to-body mass ratio) means that they are extremely smart animals.  

 

 

               Habitat:

       Cuttlefish inhabit tropical and temperate coastal parts of the ocean. They typically swim throughout the Mediterranean’s Sea and the Eastern Atlantic from England to North Africa. Cuttlefish can stand temperatures from 60° to 82°. These fish mostly live in shallow waters around coral reefs. During the winter, which is mating season, cuttlefish gather deeper into the ocean to mate. They don’t swim much deeper than 500 meters.

 

 

 

 

         Prey Adaptation:

     Cuttlefish use their ability to camouflage in order to hide from predators such as dolphins. Cuttlefish can camouflage by colour, contrast and texture with their surroundings and match it within seconds. They can also do the same in any lighting, even if it’s dark. When attacked, cuttlefish produce a cloud of black ink, which stalls the predator while the cuttlefish escapes. To protect themselves, cuttlefish can change their form by adjusting their arms. For example, like in the photo below; the fish is disguising itself as a plant. 

 

 

 

             Predator Adaptation:

     Cuttlefish have many qualities that make them better predators. They use their skill to camouflage and change shape to sneak up on its prey. These molluscs can squirt black ink to confuse the animal about to be hunted. Cuttlefish also have pads called denticulate suckers, which better secures the animal getting eaten. Below is a link to a video in which you see how a cuttlefish captures and eats its prey. 

 

http://www.arkive.org/common-cuttlefish/sepia-officinalis/video-08a.html 

 

 

 

     Symbiosis

     Cuttlefish have interactions with shallow coral reefs because that is their habitat. Cuttlefish benefit from the coral reef because it protects them from predators while the coral reef remains unharmed. This type of symbiosis is called commensalism.

 

          Species Comparison- Squid

     Similarities: Cuttlefish and squid are both in the cephalopoda class. They each produce ink for self-defense. Cuttlefish and squid both have denticulated suckers on their tentacles. These two alike animals are both able to camouflage for self-protection. They ar both carnivores and they both have eight arms and two tentacles. 

      Differences: The cuttlefish and the squid are hardly different. For the most part, they are almost exactly the same. One difference bewteen these animals is that there are more species of squid than there are of cuttlefish.  

 

   

 

 

 

 

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