Flamboyant cuttlefish

Ascarosepion pfefferi · The flamboyant cuttlefish is a small cuttlefish that lives in tropical Indo-Pacific waters off northern Australia, southern New Guinea, and islands of the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia.

Also called Pfeffer's flamboyant cuttlefish.

Flamboyant cuttlefish
Photo: Bernard DUPONT from FRANCE, CC BY-SA 2.0
Flamboyant cuttlefish
Photo: Jenny (JennyHuang) from Taipei, CC BY 2.0
Flamboyant cuttlefish
Photo: Dmitry Domrin, CC BY 4.0

Taxonomy

KingdomAnimalia
PhylumMollusca
ClassCephalopoda
OrderSepiida
FamilySepiidae
GenusAscarosepion
SpeciesAscarosepion pfefferi

Where it lives

Sandy and muddy seabeds of northern Australia, New Guinea and Indonesia.

Fun facts

  • Unlike most cuttlefish, this one is known to "walk" along the sea floor.
  • When disturbed, it quickly changes colour to black, dark brown and white with yellow patches, and its arm-tips often flash bright red to warn off predators.
  • One female hid about a dozen eggs under a coconut husk half by pushing them through its central hole, keeping them safe from hungry fish.
  • Its eggs start out white but slowly turn translucent, so the baby cuttlefish inside can be clearly seen.

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Facts and taxonomy adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).