Bathyteuthis abyssicola

Bathyteuthis abyssicola
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Cephalopoda
Subclass:	Coleoidea
Order:	Teuthida
Suborder:	Oegopsina
Family:	Bathyteuthidae
Genus:	Bathyteuthis
Species:	B. abyssicola
Binomial name
Bathyteuthis abyssicola Hoyle, 1885

Bathyteuthis abyssicola, also known as the Deepsea Squid, is a species of squid in the family Bathyteuthidae.

Bathyteuthis abyssicola is the type species of Bathyteuthis. It is a small, deep maroon-colored squid that inhabits the meso- and bathypelagic zones of all oceans of the world, and is particularly abundant in the Southern Ocean where it seems to be the dominant small deep-sea squid. B. abyssicola normally occurs at depths from 700-2000 m, but has been recorded from 100-4200 m.

The arms of B. abyssicola are short, with blunt tips. Protective membranes are low, fleshy, without free trabeculae (beam- or finger-like protuberances). Suckers are relatively few in number, about 100 on each of the upper six arms (pairs I-III). Sucker rings on the arms have 8-18 separated, bluntly rounded to truncate protuberances. The tentacles and clubs are relatively short. Gills are short and narrow.

External links

• Tree of Life web project: Bathyteuthis abyssicola