''Todaropsis eblanae'', also known as the lesser flying squid, is a species of short finned squid in the

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispe ...

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

'' Todaropsis'' of the family

Ommastrephidae Ommastrephidae is a family of squid containing three subfamilies, 11 genera, and over 20 species. They are widely distributed globally and are extensively fished for food. One species, '' Todarodes pacificus'', comprises around half of the world ...

Description

A relatively small squid between in length with a large, broad head.Emily Wilson 2006. Todaropsis eblanae. Lesser flying squid.

Marine Life Information Network The Marine Life Information Network (MarLIN) is an information system for marine biodiversity for Great Britain and Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic O ...

: Biology and Sensitivity Key Information Sub-programme n-line Plymouth:

Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom The Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom (MBA) is a learned society with a scientific laboratory that undertakes research in marine biology. The organisation was founded in 1884 and has been based in Plymouth since the Citadel H ...

. The males grow to a maximum

mantle length The mantle (also known by the Latin word pallium meaning mantle, robe or cloak, adjective pallial) is a significant part of the anatomy of molluscs: it is the dorsal body wall which covers the visceral mass and usually protrudes in the form of ...

of 16.0 cm and the females to a maximum mantle length of . This species possesses a terminal fin which is broadly

rhomboidal Traditionally, in two-dimensional geometry, a rhomboid is a parallelogram in which adjacent sides are of unequal lengths and angles are non-right angled. A parallelogram with sides of equal length ( equilateral) is a rhombus but not a rhomboid. ...

, wider than it is long and posteriorly rounded. Its arms are stout, more than twice the length of head, and the

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 ...

club is slim, with four rows of suckers, not extending away from the tips on to the stalk.

Habitat

This species is associated with muddy substrates.

Biology

A total of 21 specimens were examined from examples caught in Galicia and different prey items which fell into three distinct types were found to be taken as prey by ''Todaropis eblanae'' these were bony fish,

crustaceans Crustaceans (Crustacea, ) form a large, diverse arthropod taxon which includes such animals as decapods, seed shrimp, branchiopods, fish lice, krill, remipedes, isopods, barnacles, copepods, amphipods and mantis shrimp. The crustacean gro ...

and other cephalopods. The diet was found to be dominated by

blue whiting The blue whiting (''Micromesistius poutassou'') one of the two species in the genus '' Micromesistius'' in the family Gadidae, which also contains cod, haddock, whiting, and pollock. It is common in the northeast Atlantic Ocean from Morocco to ...

''Micromesistius poutassou'', which was found to make up 43% of the prey taken. In Irish Waters Mueller's Pearlside ('' Maurolicus muelleri''), a small

mesopelagic The mesopelagic zone (Greek μέσον, middle), also known as the middle pelagic or twilight zone, is the part of the pelagic zone that lies between the photic epipelagic and the aphotic bathypelagic zones. It is defined by light, and begins at ...

fish, is a particularly important prey item of ''Todaropsis eblanae'' being found in and 34.7% of stomachs examined with prey remains. in northern waters ''Todaropsis eblanae'' generally mate and spawn in the summer and early autumn months, i.e. from June through to November. Hatching occurs in late autumn through to the early spring, i.e. from October up until March, producing juveniles in the first half of the year.

Distribution

Found in the eastern coastal waters of the North Atlantic and South Atlantic from Shetland to the Cape of Good Hope, and the Indian Ocean from the along the coasts of southern Africa,

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

and the

Mascarenes The Mascarene Islands (, ) or Mascarenes or Mascarenhas Archipelago is a group of islands in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar consisting of the islands belonging to the Republic of Mauritius as well as the French department of Réunion. Thei ...

north to the

Timor Sea The Timor Sea ( id, Laut Timor, pt, Mar de Timor, tet, Tasi Mane or ) is a relatively shallow sea bounded to the north by the island of Timor, to the east by the Arafura Sea, and to the south by Australia. The sea contains a number of reefs ...

, and then along the western and south-eastern coasts of Australia.

Fisheries

This squid is one of the most abundant cephalopods in the

Celtic Sea The Celtic Sea ; cy, Y Môr Celtaidd ; kw, An Mor Keltek ; br, Ar Mor Keltiek ; french: La mer Celtique is the area of the Atlantic Ocean off the southern coast of Ireland bounded to the east by Saint George's Channel; other limits includ ...

, even so it is usually caught as a bycatch by trawlers fishing for other species.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1863218 Squid Molluscs of the Atlantic Ocean Molluscs of the Indian Ocean Molluscs of the Pacific Ocean Marine molluscs of Europe Cephalopods of Europe Gliding animals Cephalopods described in 1841