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Histioteuthis miranda (Berry 1918)

Richard E. Young and Michael Vecchione
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Holotype not extant. Neotype 182 mm ML, female. Deposited at USNM #576165.
Containing group: Histioteuthidae

Introduction

H. miranda is often the most common histioteuthid captured within its habitat. This species is believed to be associated with shallow ocean-floor topography. It is broadly distributed in southern waters but Voss et al., 1998, found no indication of population differentiation throughout the range of this species.

Characteristics

  1. Tubercles
    1. Arms I with 14-19 tubercules; arms II with 11-16 tubercules and arms III with 7-13.
    2. Length of tubercule-rows 19-39% of arm lengths.
  2. Photophores
    1. Arms IV with 5 longitudinal series on arm base.

Comments

More details of the description can be found here.

Species of the miranda-group are distinguished by the following characteristics:

  1. Tubercles
    1. Present on dorsal midline of mantle and aboral surface of arms I-III.
  2. Photophores
    1. In 5-6 series on arm IV base.
    2. Compound photophores of uniform, medium size on anterior 3/4 of ventral mantle.

H. miranda is most easily separated from the other member of the miranda-group, H. oceani, by (1) the lesser number of photophores on the base of arms IV (5 vs 6), (2) the lesser number of tubercules in on each arm, (3) the lesser length of the tubercule rows on the arms, and the divided buccal connectives to arms II (attach to arms I and II).

The above data are taken from Voss, et al. (1998).

Life History

Females are mature at 200-267 mm ML; males at 93-262 mm ML.
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Figure. Dorsal and ventral views of two growth stages of H. miranda. Left - 17 mm ML, 32°S, 174°E. Right - 36 mm ML, 34°S, 16&deg. Drawings from Voss, et al. (1998).

Distribution

Geographical distribution

Type locality: South by southeast of Gabo Island, Victoria, Australia (ca. 38°S,150°E). H. miranda is found off southwest Africa eastward to the Australia-New Zealand area. It occurs near continental slopes, islands and submarine rises (Voss, et al., 1998).

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Figure. Distribution chart of H. miranda. Chart modified from Voss et al. (1998).

References

Voss, N. A. 1969. A monograph of the Cephalopoda of the North Atlantic: The family Histioteuthidae. Bull. Mar. Sci., 19: 713-867.

Voss, N.A., K. N. Nesis, P. G. Rodhouse. 1998. The cephalopod family Histioteuthidae (Oegopsida): Systematics, biology, and biogeography. Smithson. Contr. Zool., 586(2): 293-372.

Title Illustrations
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Scientific Name Histioteuthis miranda, Histioteuthis miranda (2)
Location 37° 54''S, 178° 56''E, 37° 54''S, 178° 56''E (2)
Reference from Voss, N. A. 1969. A monograph of the Cephalopoda of the North Atlantic: The family Histioteuthidae. Bull. Mar. Sci. 19:713-867. printed with permission
Sex f, f (2)
View dorsal, ventral (2)
Size 182 mm ML, 182 mm ML (2)
Type neotype, neotype (2)
Copyright © 1969 Bulletin of Marine Science
About This Page
Drawings from Voss (1969) printed with the Permission of the Bulletin of Marine Science.


University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI, USA


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

Page: Tree of Life Histioteuthis miranda (Berry 1918). 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. 2000. Histioteuthis miranda (Berry 1918). Version 01 January 2000 (under construction). http://tolweb.org/Histioteuthis_miranda/19806/2000.01.01 in The Tree of Life Web Project, http://tolweb.org/

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