Histioteuthis sp. A Young and Vecchione

Introduction

This is a rather cyclindrical, muscular histioteuthid that is known only from five squid captured in the waters around the Hawaiian Islands.

Brief diagnosis:

• with a single sawtooth in Basal Row of photophores.
• with virtually symmetrical outer sucker rings in ventromarginal series on club manus.

Characteristics

1. Tentacles
   1. Central suckers just slightly enlarged over marginal suckers.
   2. Suckers of ventral-marginal rows of manus with broad, but nearly symmetrical outer rings.
      

      Click on an image to view larger version & data in a new window

      

      Figure. Left - Oral view of a swath across the manus of the club of Histioteuthis sp. A, 41 mm ML, Hawaii. The small suckers on the right are carpal suckers. Right - Oral view of a ventral-marginal sucker of the club, 41 mm ML, Hawaii. Photographs by R. Young.

   3. Medial manal suckers of club with slender teeth only on distal margin of inner ring; proximal margin with small teeth difficult to see under dissecting microscope.
      
      

      Click on an image to view larger version & data in a new window

      

      Figure. Oral view of large, central manus suckers of the club of Histioteuthis sp. A, 41 mm ML,Hawaii.Photograph by R. Young.

   Scanning electron micrographs of the arms and club suckers can be seen here.

2. Head
   1. Photophores: Basal Row comprised of 9 photophores, and forms distinct sawtooth at left end.
      
      

      Click on an image to view larger version & data in a new window

      

      Figure.Ventral view of posterior edge of head of Histioteuthis sp. A showing the Basal Row, 41 mm ML, Hawaii. Photograph by R. Young.

   2. Beaks: Descriptions can be found here: Lower beak; upper beak.

Comments

Species of the celetaria-group are characterized by:

1. Head and arm photophores:
   1. Type 1b pattern on head.
   2. Basal Row of head with 9 or 10 photophores.
   3. Right Basal Series of head absent.
   4. Arms IV with 3 longitudinal series on arm base (drawing below).
      

      Click on an image to view larger version & data in a new window

      

      Figure. Ventral view of arm IV, H. celetaria, 39 mm ML. Drawing from Voss, 1969 (Fig. 15f).

   5. Most species with separate group of 4-8 compound photophores on ends of arms IV (drawing above) (Voss, et al., 1998). Apparently this feature is absent in H. inermis.
   6. Compound photophores of large, uniform size and evenly spaced on anterior 2/3 of ventral mantle.
2. Tubercles
   1. Absent.

The species differ in the following manner:

With the exception of the analysis of head photophores and the inclusion of H. inermis in this species group, most of the information presented in this table is from Voss (1969) and Voss, et al . (1998)

Life History

Distribution

References

Voss, N. A. 1969. A monograph of the Cephalopoda of the North Atlantic: The family Histioteuthidae. Bull. Mar. Sci., 19: 713-867.

Voss, N.A., K. N. Nesis, P. G. Rodhouse. 1998. The cephalopod family Histioteuthidae (Oegopsida): Systematics, biology, and biogeography. Smithson. Contr. Zool., 586(2): 293-372.