The Octopoteuthidae are a
family
Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...
of
squid comprising two
genera. The family is characterized by
tentacle
In zoology, a tentacle is a flexible, mobile, and elongated organ present in some species of animals, most of them invertebrates. In animal anatomy, tentacles usually occur in one or more pairs. Anatomically, the tentacles of animals work ma ...
s which cease to grow after the paralarval stage, and the use of a
penis
A penis (plural ''penises'' or ''penes'' () is the primary sexual organ that male animals use to inseminate females (or hermaphrodites) during copulation. Such organs occur in many animals, both vertebrate and invertebrate, but males d ...
, instead of a
hectocotylus
A hectocotylus (plural: ''hectocotyli'') is one of the arms of male cephalopods that is specialized to store and transfer spermatophores to the female. Structurally, hectocotyli are muscular hydrostats. Depending on the species, the male may use i ...
.
Species
*Genus ''
Octopoteuthis''
**''
Octopoteuthis danae''
**''
Octopoteuthis deletron''
**''
Octopoteuthis indica'' *
**''
Octopoteuthis longiptera''
**''
Octopoteuthis megaptera''
**''
Octopoteuthis nielseni''
**''
Octopoteuthis rugosa''
**''
Octopoteuthis sicula'', Ruppell's octopus squid
*Genus ''
Taningia''
**''
Taningia danae'', Dana octopus squid
**''
Taningia persica'' *
The species listed above with an asterisk (
*) are questionable and need further study to determine if they are a valid species or a synonym.
References
External links
Octopoteuthidae discussion forum at TONMO.comTree of Life web project: Octopoteuthidae
Squid
Cephalopod families
{{Squid-stub