Cuttle Fish Information

Habitat

• Cuttlefish live in shallow waters all around the world. They are found along coral reefs, in sea-grass beds and on mud seafloors. Although most Common Cuttlefish are found at depths of no more than 60 feet, some Giant Cuttlefish have been found 330 feet beneath the ocean surface.

Predators

• Cuttlefish are prey for such animals as other cuttlefish, dolphins, sea lions, fish, rays, marine birds and humans. Cuttlefish avoid predators through camouflage, but once found they can propel themselves away with a jet of water from their mantle and spray ink to confuse pursuers while they make their escape.

Diet

• Cuttlefish are carnivorous. They eat a variety of organisms, including small mollusks, shrimp, crabs, other crustaceans, and other cuttlefish. Cuttlefish will often blow air on sandy areas to expose prey or hypnotize prey with patterns flickering across their skin before snapping out with two long tentacles to capture their food. Poisonous saliva helps cuttlefish paralyze and kill their prey.

Anatomy

• Adult cuttlefish range in size from approximately 36 cm to 1 m in length. Cuttlefish in the higher numbers of this range are typically Australian Giant Cuttlefish (Sepia apama). Cuttlefish have a mantle, eight suction-cup lined tentacles, and two long arms. The arms are used to hunt, grasp objects and for defense. The eight tentacles are used to hold prey more securely. Cuttlefish also have a hard beak, located at the base of their tentacles that is used to defend themselves and kill prey. During the mating process, the male reveals an extra tentacle that is used to insert a spermicide into the female and fertilize her eggs.

  Cuttlefish use specialized pigment cells, called chromataphores, to rapidly change colors. They also use tiny muscles to change the texture of their skin at will. These aspects of their anatomy account for their famed camouflage ability. Cuttlefish also alter their appearance to communicate and evade conflict.

Reproductive Behavior

• A female cuttlefish may mate with several males before she lays her eggs. Male cuttlefish compete for the ability to mate with females. Some male cuttlefish avoid facing a challenge from other males by altering themselves to look like females, slipping past their competitors unnoticed. Before they mate, male cuttlefish spray water into females to wash out any remaining spermicide from previous couplings.

  Female cuttlefish lay their eggs in clusters, attached to an underwater surface such as seaweed. Once she lays her eggs the female cuttlefish will guard them until they hatch approximately two months later.