Psychroteuthis glacialis

Psychroteuthis glacialis

Glacial squid, Psychroteuthidae

Kingdom
Phylum
Class
Order
SPECIES
Psychroteuthis glacialis

Psychroteuthis glacialis, the glacial squid, is the only known species in the monotypic genus Psychroteuthis, in the family Psychroteuthidae. While only one species has been confirmed, two undescribed species also probably exist. The species occurs in coastal waters near Antarctica and South America. It grows to a mantle length of 44 cm (1.44 ft).

Distribution

Geography

The squid inhabits the pelagic zone in subtropical reigons. It is found in depths of 300–1,000 m (980–3,280 ft).

Habits and Lifestyle

P. glacialis is known to feed on many crustaceans, fish, lanternfish, Antarctic krill, and Antarctic silverfish, and has been known to practice cannibalism. Animals known to routinely feed on glacial squid include the Antarctic petrel, light-mantled albatross, Ross seal, southern elephant seal, Weddell seal, Patagonian toothfish, wandering albatross, grey-headed albatross, the Adélie penguin, and the emperor penguin.

Diet and Nutrition

References

1. Psychroteuthis glacialis Wikipedia article - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychroteuthis_glacialis
2. Psychroteuthis glacialis on The IUCN Red List site - https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/163026/964719

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