Seven-arm Octopus

Seven-arm Octopus
Ventral view of young female (70 mm ML)
Lateral view of young male
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Cephalopoda
Order:	Octopoda
Superfamily:	Argonautoida
Family:	Alloposidae Verrill, 1881
Genus:	Haliphron Steenstrup, 1861
Species:	H. atlanticus
Binomial name
Haliphron atlanticus Steenstrup, 1861
Synonyms
Alloposus mollis Verrill, 1880 ?Octopus alberti Joubin, 1895 Alloposus pacificus Ijima & Ikeda, 1902 Heptapus danai Joubin, 1929 Alloposus hardyi Robson, 1930 ?Alloposina albatrossi Robson, 1932

The Seven-arm Octopus (Haliphron atlanticus) is the largest known species of octopus based on scientific records, with a total estimated length of 4 m and weight of 75 kg.^[1][2] However, there have been claims of even larger octopuses of the species Enteroctopus dofleini.

Description

Oral view

The Seven-arm Octopus is so named because in males the hectocotylus (a specially modified arm used in egg fertilization) is coiled in a sac beneath the right eye. Due to this species' thick gelatinous tissue, the arm is easily overlooked, giving the appearance of just seven arms. However, like other octopuses, it actually has eight.

In 2002, a single specimen of giant proportions was caught by fisheries trawling off the eastern Chatham Rise, New Zealand. This specimen, the largest of this species and of all octopuses, was the first validated record of Haliphron from the South Pacific. It had a mantle length of 0.69 m, total length of 2.90 m, and weight of 61.0 kg, although it was incomplete.

The type specimen of H. atlanticus was collected in the Atlantic Ocean at 38°N 34°W. It is deposited at the Zoologisk Museum, University of Copenhagen.^[3]

The genera Alloposina Grimpe, 1922, Alloposus Verrill, 1880 and Heptapus Joubin, 1929 are junior synonyms of Haliphron.

See also

• Enteroctopus dofleini
• Cephalopod size

References

1. ^ O'Shea, S. 2004. The giant octopus Haliphron atlanticus (Mollusca : Octopoda) in New Zealand waters. New Zealand Journal of Zoology 31(1): 7-13.
2. ^ O'Shea, S. 2002. Haliphron atlanticus — a giant gelatinous octopus. Biodiversity Update 5: 1.
3. ^ Current Classification of Recent Cephalopoda

Further reading

• Bakken, T. & T. Holthe 2002. Haliphron atlanticum (Cephalopoda, Alloposidae) caught in Skorafjorden (64°N), Norway. Fauna norv. 22: 37-38.
• Willassen, E. 1986. Haliphron atlanticus Steenstrup (Cephalopoda: Octopoda) from the coast of Norway. Sarsia 71: 35-40.

External links

• CephBase: Seven-arm Octopus
• Tree of Life web project: Haliphron atlanticus
• The giant octopus Haliphron atlanticus (Mollusca: Octopoda) in New Zealand waters
• BBC News: Giant octopus puzzles scientists
• Tony Wu Underwater Photography: Seven-arm Octopus

This article related to the octopus is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.v · Categories: Megafauna Octopuses Octopus stubs Wikimedia Foundation. 2010. Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая? Samus MXC Look at other dictionaries: Octopus — This article is about the order of cephalopod. For other uses, see Octopus (disambiguation). Octopus …   Wikipedia North Pacific Giant Octopus — Taxobox name = North Pacific Giant Octopus image caption = E. dofleini observed off Pt Pinos at a depth of 65 meters. regnum = Animalia phylum = Mollusca classis = Cephalopoda ordo = Octopoda familia = Octopodidae genus = Enteroctopus species = E …   Wikipedia Cephalopod arm — Arm of Illex illecebrosus with two rows of suckers along its length Tentacle of Illex illecebrosus with a distal tentacular club (right) …   Wikipedia St. Augustine Monster — The carcass as it appeared after being dug out of the sand. The St. Augustine Monster is the name given to a large unidentified carcass, originally postulated to be the remains of a gigantic octopus, that washed ashore on the United States coast… …   Wikipedia Enteroctopus dofleini — Giant Pacific Octopus E. dofleini observed off Point Piños, California, at a depth of 65 meters. Scientific classification Kingdom …   Wikipedia Octopodiformes — Octopus vulgaris Scientific classification …   Wikipedia Incirrina — Taxobox name = Incirrina image caption = Wunderpus photogenicus regnum = Animalia phylum = Mollusca classis = Cephalopoda ordo = Octopoda subordo = Incirrina subordo authority = Grimpe, 1916 sensu Felley et al. , 2001 subdivision ranks = Families …   Wikipedia Argonautoida — Taxobox name = Argonautoida image caption = Ocythoe tuberculata regnum = Animalia phylum = Mollusca classis = Cephalopoda ordo = Octopoda subordo = Incirrina superfamilia = Argonautoida superfamilia authority = Naef, 1912 subdivision ranks =… …   Wikipedia Haliphron atlanticus —   Haliphron atlanticu …   Wikipedia Español Hectocotylus — A hectocotylus is one of the arms of the male of most kinds of cephalopods that is modified in various ways to effect the fertilization of the female s eggs. It is a specialized, extended tentacle used to store spermatophores, the male gamete.… …   Wikipedia 18+ © Academic, 2000-2025 Contact us: Technical Support, Advertising Dictionaries export, created on PHP, Joomla, Drupal, WordPress, MODx. Mark and share Search through all dictionaries Translate… Search Internet Share the article and excerpts Direct link … Do a right-click on the link above and select “Copy Link”