Cephalopod
Broadtail shortfin squid
Illex coindetti
(VIIf) Bristol Channel, (VIII) Bay of Biscay
Zones de pêche
Wild
Origine
15 cm
Taille minimale
Description
This squid has a cylindrical, muscular body (mantle) that tapers toward the rear. Its head is broad with large eyes. Its terminal fins are short and form a broad diamond shape (wider than they are long). They occupy about one-third of the mantle’s length. It has 8 arms equipped with suction cups and 2 longer tentacles ending in a “club” lined with four rows of suction cups. Its color varies due to its chromatophores, but it generally displays reddish-brown to purplish hues on its back and lighter shades on its belly. The mantle length is typically 15 to 25 cm, but can reach a maximum of 37 cm in females (which are larger than males).
Habitat
It is a pelagic and demersal species (living both in open water and near the seafloor) on the continental shelf and slope. It is found primarily above muddy, silty, or debris-covered seafloors. Its bathymetric range is very broad, extending from 40 to 1,000 meters in depth, with the highest concentration between 150 and 400 meters. It undertakes significant daily vertical migrations: it remains near the bottom during the day and rises toward the surface at night to hunt fish, crustaceans, and other cephalopods.
Distribution
It is found in the eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean. It is found from the southern North Sea (rare) to Namibia in the south. It is also found in the western Atlantic (Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea). It is extremely abundant throughout the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea.