3 research outputs found
World squid fisheries
Peer reviewedPublisher PD
The deep‑water squid Octopoteuthis sicula Rüppell, 1844 (Cephalopoda: Octopoteuthidae) as the single species of the genus occurring in the Mediterranean Sea
The genus Octopoteuthis includes squids inhabiting
meso- and bathypelagic waters worldwide. Of the
seven presently named species distributed in the world’s
oceans, only Octopoteuthis sicula has been reported for
certain in the Mediterranean Sea to date. However, mixed
and confusing descriptions of the systematic characters
useful for identifying the species occur in the literature.
Similarly, molecular analysis results available for the genus
are contradictory and inconsistent. The research herein
was undertaken firstly to clarify the systematic status of the genus in the Mediterranean Sea and confirm the presence of a single species, namely O. sicula. Additional goals
were the assessment of the validity of systematic characters
to identify the species and the analysis of beak morphology
to provide useful tools in prey–predator relationship
studies. Octopoteuthis specimens from various areas of
the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic and Pacific oceans
were compared, and the analysis of traditional morphological
characters was combined with molecular genetics and
the study of beaks. Molecular genetics and beak morphology
results support the existence of a single species in the
Mediterranean Sea. Additional evidence would suggest that
this species is also distributed in the north-eastern Atlantic.
The morphological characters reported in the literature
to identify O. sicula did not identify Mediterranean specimens,
with the exception of the two tail photophores. All information collected supports the need for a reconsideration of morphological characters used to identify Octopoteuthis
species.Versión del editor2,011