Now that I’ve got my new book on cephalopods of Australasia (thanks to REDMAP), I’m dying to put it to good use.
One of the best aspects of the book – for me – is the cuttlebone identification guide on the final series of pages.
You’ll see from Day 300 that I found two differently-shaped cuttlebones on my recent long weekend at Marion Bay.
Matching these images to the ones in my new guide, the top bone I believe to have come from Sepia chirotrema, which lives in the waters of Southern Australia from Investigator Strait to Dirk Hartog Island, Western Australia.
The bottom bone is puzzling me a bit more. It’s broader, more rounded and has a smaller pointed spine. My best guess it that maybe it’s Sepia mestus (the ‘Reaper Cuttlefish‘). These creatures live in the waters of Eastern Australia; I suppose it’s possible that the bone was carried by waves to South Australia. I’m not certain.
It’s also possible that the Reaper Cuttlefish is expanding in its distribution, but I have no other evidence to support that theory.
If only I’d brought back the bones with me to Adelaide for closer inspection! Next time.
Image shows my son doing cephalopod research, inspired by our fantastic new book.
Science for Life. 365 