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Rondeletiola Naef, 1921

Michael Vecchione and Richard E. Young
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Containing group: Sepiolinae

Introduction

Species of Rondeletiola are small, mostly less than 20 mm ML and can be common on mud and fine sand bottoms. Naef (1921-23) reported that about 5,000 were caught on one occasion in the Bay of Naples at a depth of 150-200 m.

Diagnosis

A sepiolin ...

Characteristics

  1. Arms
    1. Arm sucker in two series.
    2. Left arm I hectocotylized with 3 basal suckers proximal to copulatory apparatus with recurved lateral teeth; distal portion of arm not expanded.
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      Figure. Oral view of arms I of R. minor, male. Drawing from Naef (1921-23).

    3. Arms II and III of male with enlarged suckers in ventral series.

  2. Tentacles
    1. Tentacular club with suckers in 8-16 series.
    2. Club suckers small, uniform in size.

  3. Photophores.
    1. Photophores fused into a circular organ in adults .
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      Figure. Ventral view of the mantle cavity of R. minor, mature male, ca. 18 mm ML. Drawing from Naef (1921-23).

  4. Gladius
    1. Gladius absent.

Comments.

We place Inioteuthis capensis Voss (1962) into Rondeletiola based on what appears to be a large circular photophore embedded in the ink sac. In addition, the structure of the hectocotylus of this species appears to be closer to that of Rondeletiola than Inioteuthis.

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Click on an image to view larger version & data in a new window

Figure. "Idioteuthis" capensis Voss , 1962. Left - Dorsal view of holotype, 10 mm ML. Middle - Ventral view of anterior mantle cavity with funnel cut open showing intestine and presumed photophore. Right - Oral view of hectocotylized left arm I.

Distribution

Mediterranean Sea and eastern Atlantic form Spain to the tip of South Africa, 15 m to upper slope.

References

Naef, A. 1921-1923. Die Cephalopoden. Fauna e Flora del Golfo di Napoli, Monographie 35, Vol I, Parts I and II, Systematik, pp 1-863.

Voss, G.L. 1962. South African Cephalopods. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Africa, 36(4):245-272.

Title Illustrations
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Scientific Name Rondeletiola minor
Location Mediterranean Sea
Reference Naef, A. 1921-1923. Die Cephalopoden. Fauna e Flora del Golfo di Napoli, Monographie 35, Vol I, Parts I and II, Systematik, pp 1-863.
View Dorsal and ventral
Size 20 mm, 17 mm ML
About This Page


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


University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI, USA

Page: Tree of Life Rondeletiola Naef, 1921. Authored by Michael Vecchione and Richard E. Young. 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:

Vecchione, Michael and Richard E. Young. 2003. Rondeletiola Naef, 1921. Version 30 November 2003 (under construction). http://tolweb.org/Rondeletiola/20040/2003.11.30 in The Tree of Life Web Project, http://tolweb.org/

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