''Enoploteuthis'' is a genus of

squid True squid are molluscs with an elongated soft body, large eyes, eight arms, and two tentacles in the superorder Decapodiformes, though many other molluscs within the broader Neocoleoidea are also called squid despite not strictly fitting t ...

in the family

Enoploteuthidae The Enoploteuthidea are a family of squid comprising approximately 40 species in four genera. Most species have a mantle length ranging from 3–13 cm. Hooks are present on all arms and tentacles. The family is best known for the large arr ...

. The species of ''Enoploteuthis''are most easily recognised by having a larger tail when compared to the other genera in the Enoploteuthidae. The tail's size is emphasised not having the fins extending along its sides. In related genera there is a narrow extension of the fins along the tail. Other characteristics include the presence of suckers on the distal portion of

arms Arms or ARMS may refer to: *Arm or arms, the upper limbs of the body Arm, Arms, or ARMS may also refer to: People * Ida A. T. Arms (1856–1931), American missionary-educator, temperance leader Coat of arms or weapons *Armaments or weapons **Fi ...

IV where there at no

photophore A photophore is a glandular organ that appears as luminous spots on various marine animals, including fish and cephalopods. The organ can be simple, or as complex as the human eye; equipped with lenses, shutters, color filters and reflectors, ...

s present; the

tentacular club All cephalopods possess flexible limbs extending from their heads and surrounding their beaks. These appendages, which function as muscular hydrostats, have been variously termed arms, legs or tentacles. Description In the scientific li ...

has two rows of hooks and no marginal suckers; on the buccal crown there are typical

chromatophore Chromatophores are cells that produce color, of which many types are Biological pigment, pigment-containing cells, or groups of cells, found in a wide range of animals including amphibians, fish, reptiles, crustaceans and cephalopods. Mammals and ...

s on the aboral surface but on the oral surface there may be some light skin pigmentation. They have 9-10 photophores on the eye and they have complex photophores in the skin. In the females the

Spermatangia A gametangium (plural: gametangia) is an organ or cell in which gametes are produced that is found in many multicellular protists, algae, fungi, and the gametophytes of plants. In contrast to gametogenesis in animals, a gametangium is a haploid ...

receptacles are at the posterior junction of muscles used to retract the funnel and the muscles which retract the head. ''Enoploteuthis'' differs from other genera of the Enoploteuthidae in having two rather than three types of photophores in its

integument In biology, an integument is the tissue surrounding an organism's body or an organ within, such as skin, a husk, shell, germ or rind. Etymology The term is derived from ''integumentum'', which is Latin for "a covering". In a transferred, or ...

and these are on the

ventral Standard anatomical terms of location are used to unambiguously describe the anatomy of animals, including humans. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek language, Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. Th ...

areas of the head, funnel and mantle. All species of ''Enoploteuthis'' which have been studied have the most complex type of photophoreand seems to be a distinctive characteristic of this genus. ''Enoploteuthis'' contains the largest species in the family, attaining a mantle length of 130mm. ''Enoploteuthis'' is a genus with a relatively high number of species and most of these have been described in the late 20th and early 21st Centuries. They have been collected during exploratory trawling in the

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 ...

zone. They are an important food source for fishes and

toothed whales The toothed whales (also called odontocetes, systematic name Odontoceti) are a parvorder of cetaceans that includes dolphins, porpoises, and all other whales possessing teeth, such as the beaked whales and sperm whales. Seventy-three species of t ...

but they are of little commercial value, except for '' Enoploteuthis chunii'' which is caught as bycatch in the Japanese fishery for '' Watasenia scintillans''. Many species are diel migrants, spending the day at depth and moving up the water column at night to feed.

Species

The following valid species are currently recognised: *'' Enoploteuthis leptura'' (Leach, 1817) *'' Enoploteuthis magnoceani'' Nesis, 1982 *'' Enoploteuthis obliqua'' Burgess, 1982 *'' Enoploteuthis octolineata'' Burgess, 1982 *'' Enoploteuthis reticulata'' Rancurel, 1970 *'' Enoploteuthis anapsis''

Roper Roper is a craftsman who makes ropes; a ropemaker. It may also refer to: Places *Roper, North Carolina, USA *Roper River, Northern Territory, Australia People * Roper (surname) Other *'' Roper v. Simmons'', a decision of the United States Sup ...

, 1964 *'' Enoploteuthis chunii'' Ishikawa, 1914 *'' Enoploteuthis galaxias'' Berry, 1918 *'' Enoploteuthis higginsi'' Burgess, 1982 *'' Enoploteuthis jonesi'' Burgess, 1982 *'' Enoploteuthis semilineata'' Alexeyev, 1994 These species are sometimes divided into two subgenera ''Enoploteuthis'' and ''Paraenoploteuthis''.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q3197781 Squid Cephalopod genera Bioluminescent molluscs