Cirroctopus hochbergi

Introduction

Cirroctopus hochbergi was described from 48 specimens but is known only from a restricted area off the northeast coast of New Zealand.

Characteristics

1. Shell
   1. Shell V-shaped with short saddle.
   2. Shell surface rugose.
   3. Basal shelf absent.
   

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   Figure. Shell of C. hochbergi. Left - Posterior view of saddle; dorsal view of shell; lateral view of wing. Drawings from O'Shea (1999). Middle -  Dorsal view of shell (left with tip of one wing missing), preserved. Right - Oblique view showing dorsal surface of saddle and lateral surface of wing, preserved. Female, ca. ... mm ML. Photographs by R. Young from a specimen sent by S. O'Shea.

2. Oral-surface pigmentation
   1. Oral surfaces of web sectors A, B and C (to sucker 16-18) and D and E (to sucker 12-13) deep mauve to purple; outer oral surfaces of web and oral surfaces of arms and suckers white to pale mauve.

Comments

The above description is taken from O'Shea (1999). More descriptive features of C. hochbergi can be found here

The highly rugose nature of the shell is in marked contrast to that of C. glacialis. However, the shells of C. hochbergi were from specimens frozen prior to fixation. The effect of freezing on the surface texture of the shell is unknown. The mantle septum also differs greatly between these species. The thick, gelatinous septum of C. glacialis is represented by a thin membrane in C. hochbergi although this, also, could be an artifact of freezing prior to fixation. A third feature that may separate these species is the presence of a peculiar pigmentation pattern on the oral surface of the web and arms in C. glacialis. C. hochbergi, however, has a pattern to the oral surfaces (see above).

C. hochbergi differs from C. mawsoni in having dorsal and ventral pigmentation similar (in C. mawsoni the ventral pigmentation is much lighter) (O'Shea, 1999).

Distribution

References

O'Shea, Steve. 1999. The Marine Fauna of New Zealand: Octopoda (Mollusca: Cephalopoda). NIWA Biodiversity Memoir 112: 280pp.

Vecchione, M., U. Piatkowski and A. L. Allcock. 1998. Biology of the cirrate octopod Grimpoteuthis glacialis (Cephalopoda; Opisthoteuthidae) in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica. S. Afr. J. Mar. Sci. 20: 421-428.'