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Dieren en planten

Molluscs   Cuttlefish   Curled octopus   Common cuttlefish   Squid   Long-finned squid   Sagittal squid   
Common cuttlefish, Ecomare, Peter van der Wolf

Cuttlefish

Cuttlefish are well developed molluscs. This can be seen for example by their eyes which can distinguish details exceptionally well. They hunt crustaceans, shellfish, fish and other cuttlefish. There are two major groups within the cuttlefish family: the 8 and the 10 armed types. The 8-arm sort found in the North Sea is the curled octopus. Otherwise, only 10-armed cuttlefish are found in the North Sea. This programme handles the common cuttlefish, the long-finned squid, the sagittal squid and the common squid.

  • Self-defense

    Cuttlefish are food for various species of predator fish, dolphins and people. However, they have three ways to protect themselves from enemies. First of all, they can swim backwards incredibly fast by activating their 'jet motor'. They suck in water via a tube located on their side. When threatened, they squeeze in their body, which pushes out the water. This fierce stream propels the cuttlefish forward, or in this case backwards. Secondly, they can emit a cloud of colored fluid. The ink not only serves to blind the attacker, it probably also affects its sense of smell. Thirdly, they take advantage of camouflage: they take on the color of their surroundings. The common cuttlefish in particular is good at this; they are also called the 'chameleon of the sea'. However, marine biologists point out that common cuttlefish can actually change color more quickly than chameleons. In that case, it's the chamelons which should be called the common cuttlefish on land'.

  • Monsters from the deep sea

    The kraken are sea monsters that often appear in legendary stories of pirates and sailors. They are large monsters, which look like an octopus. In these stories, they grab ships with their arms and drags them to the bottom of the sea. Kraken do not exist, but giant squid does. These legendary pirate stories are probably based upon the giant squid, which can reach as much as 14 meters in length. Their life is a mystery. Sometimes dead giant squid wash ashore, which is the only reason we know they exist.
    It took till 2004 before scientists were able to photograph a live giant octopus. Japanese researchers followed sperm whales, which hunt giant squid, to their hunting grounds and dropped a sturdy fishing line down to a depth of 900 meters. They used a bag of shrimp for bait. From the pictures, a giant octopus attacked the bait after a short period of time by curling its arms around it just like a python attacks its prey. Unfortunately, one of its arms caught on the fishing hook. It took four hours of wrestling before the squid escaped and only because it lost its arm.
    It is still not possible to really study a giant squid in its natural habitat. Remnants of them are found in the stomaches of sperm whales and sleeper sharks. These large animals eat underwater giants. Sperm whales often have scars from fights with giant squid.

  • Remarkable stranding

    In July 2003, a 40-centimeter long octopus was found on the beach of Westhever (Schleswig-Holstein). It was a musky octopus (Eledone moschata), a species which is normally found in the Mediterranean Sea.