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Opisthoteuthis philipii Oommen 1976

Richard E. Young and Michael Vecchione
Containing group: Opisthoteuthis

Introduction

The holotype of O. philippi is a male (140 mm ML). This species was described from 3 octopods taken at depths of 275-365 m.

Characteristics

  1. Arms, web and suckers
    1. Arms subequal in length (formula: 1>2>3>4).
    2. Suckers 1-4 from mouth small, suckers 5-11 usually largest, suckers at distal ends of arms indistinguishable with unaided eyes.
    3. Suckers visible to unaided eye on arms of holotype 92 - 97.
    4. Cirri retractile into pockets.
    5. Web sectors subequal (formula: C>B>A>D>E).
    6. Web about 68-75% of arm length.
    7. Single web nodule present (33-35 mm long, 3-4 mm wide, 3-5 mm thick) on ventral side of each arm, projects from arm at base of sucker 24.
  2. Click on an image to view larger version & data in a new window
    Click on an image to view larger version & data in a new window
    Beaks
    1. Upper beak: Hood with slightly thickened anterior area; hood ("Rostral wings") with two ridges near upper margin (extend from thickened area to posterior edge of hood.
    2. Lower beak: Hood with slightly elevated and thickened anterior area

Comments

More details of the description of O. philipii can be found here.

O. philipii appears to be separable from other species, where beaks are known, by its distinctive beaks.

Distribution

The type locality is: 09°32'N, 75°45'E Arabian Sea, Indian Ocean off southwest India, 275 m depth.

References

Oommen, V.P. 1976. A New Species of the Genus Opisthoteuthis Verrill, 1883 (Cephalopoda: Mollusca) from the Southwest Coast of India. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of India, 18(2):368-374.

About This Page


University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI, USA


National Museum of Natural History, Washington, D. C. , USA

Page: Tree of Life Opisthoteuthis philipii Oommen 1976. Authored by Richard E. Young and Michael Vecchione. The TEXT of this page is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License - Version 3.0. Note that images and other media featured on this page are each governed by their own license, and they may or may not be available for reuse. Click on an image or a media link to access the media data window, which provides the relevant licensing information. For the general terms and conditions of ToL material reuse and redistribution, please see the Tree of Life Copyright Policies.

Citing this page:

Young, Richard E. and Michael Vecchione. 2003. Opisthoteuthis philipii Oommen 1976. Version 13 May 2003 (under construction). http://tolweb.org/Opisthoteuthis_philipii/20165/2003.05.13 in The Tree of Life Web Project, http://tolweb.org/

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