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Abralia spaercki Grimpe 1931

Kotaro Tsuchiya
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Containing group: Abralia

Introduction

A. spaercki is probably a demersal mesopelagic boundary species associated with the continental or island shelves. Relationship with the allopatric A. multihamata is not fully understood.

Brief diagnosis:

An Abralia (Abralia) with ...

Characteristics

  1. Tentacle clubs
    1. Five to seven hooks on ventral side.
    2. Two rows of large suckers on dorsal side of manus.
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      Figure. Oral view of the tentacle club of A. spaercki. Top - Northern Australia. Drawing from Tsuchiya (2000). Bottom - Philippine waters. Drawing from Voss (1963).

  2. Hectocotylus
    1. Right ventral arm of male hectocotylized.
    2. Hectocotylus with two different sized off-set flaps.
    3. Proximal part of modified portion with armature.
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      Figure. Oral view of the hectocotylus of A. spaercki, northern Australia. Drawing from Tsuchiya (2000).

  3. Eye Photophores
    1. Five major complex organs: two large, terminal, opaque organs and three intermediate silvery organs; some minute additional organs present.
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      Figure. Oral view of the ocular photophores of A. spaercki. Left two - Holotype, Indonesia. Drawing from Voss (1963). Right - Northern Australia. Drawing from Tsuchiya (2000).

  4. Integumental Photophores
    1. Ventral mantle and head with relatively sparse, scattered arrangement of integumental organs.
    2. Within funnel groove a large, white photophore posteromedial to inner occipital fold.
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      Figure. Side view of the posterior head of A. spaercki, female, 48 mm ML, Philippine waters, showing photophores. Arrow points to unusual photophore at the side of the funnel groove.

Comments.

A. spaercki is very similiar to A. multihamata but has scattered photophores in the proximal half of each arm IV found between the medial and lateral (not lateral membrane) photophore series and has a single, large white photophore found in the funnel groove posteromedial to each first occipital lobe not found in A. multihamata.

Distribution

Geographical distribution

Type locality - Coast of Sawrude Island, near Ambon, Banda Sea, Indonesia. A. spaercki is recorded from the shelf waters of the Philippines, Indonesia, and northern Australia.

References

Voss, G.L. 1963. Cephalopods of the Philippine Islands. United States National Museum Bulletin, 234:1-180.

Title Illustrations
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Scientific Name Abralia spaercki
Location Near Ambon, Banda Sea, Indonesia
Reference Voss, G.L. 1963. Cephalopods of the Philippine Islands. United States National Museum Bulletin, 234:1-180.
Creator N. Voss via G. Voss
Sex Female
View Dorsal (top), ventral (bottom)
Size 47 mm ML
Type Holotype
About This Page


Tokyo University of Fisheries, Tokyo, Japan

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Citing this page:

Tsuchiya, Kotaro. 2015. Abralia spaercki Grimpe 1931. Version 11 October 2015 (under construction). http://tolweb.org/Abralia_spaercki/19650/2015.10.11 in The Tree of Life Web Project, http://tolweb.org/

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