5 páginas, 1 figura, 1 tablaThe mating behavioral pattern of the bobtail squid (Sepiola atlantica) was
observed and described for the first time in laboratory conditions. A total of five matings were
recorded. No courtship was noted in any of the mating events. In all the cases, the male moved
quickly towards the female holding her by the middle of the ventral region of the mantle with
his arms. The male, situated below the female, introduced his dorsal arms (the left dorsal arm is
hectocotylized and passes the spermatophores) into the mantle cavity of the female, while grasping
her by the ventral region with his laterodorsal arms and by the neck with his lateroventral
arms, sometimes introducing them into the female’s mantle cavity. The male showed the same
pattern of coloration during the entire mating process, whereas the female changed slowly and
successively her chromatic pattern. The duration of the mating varied between 68 and 80 minutes.
A comparison of the mating pattern of this species with other members of the family Sepiolidae
is madeThe first author was supported
by a scholarship from the Secretaría Xeral de Inmigración
de la Xunta de Galicia.Peer reviewe
