Whip-lash squid

Whip-lash squid
Mastigoteuthis flammea
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Cephalopoda
Order: Oegopsida
Superfamily: Chiroteuthoidea
Family: Mastigoteuthidae
Verrill, 1881[1]
Genera

The Mastigoteuthidae, also known as whip-lash squid, are a family of small deep-sea squid. Approximately 20 known species in six genera are represented, with members found in both the mesopelagic and bathypelagic zone of most oceans. Originally described by Verill in 1881, it was later lowered by Chun (1920) to a subfamily (Mastigoteuthinae) of the Chiroteuthidae. However, Roper et al. (1969) raised it back to the family level, and this has not been changed since. The taxonomy of this family is extremely unstable, and there have been at times one genus,[2] two genera and four subgenera(Salcedo-Vargas & Okutani, 1994), two genera and several 'groups' (Salcedo-Vargas, 1997), five genera[3] and one species with an uncertain placement, or six genera.[4]

  1. ^ Philippe Bouchet (2018). "Mastigoteuthidae Verrill, 1881". World Register of Marine Species. Flanders Marine Institute. Retrieved 1 March 2018.
  2. ^ Young, R. E.; Lindgren, A.; Vecchione, M. (August 2008). "Mastigoteuthis microlucens, a new species of the squid family Mastigoteuthidae (Mollusca: Cephalopoda)". Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. 121 (2): 276–282. doi:10.2988/07-40.1. ISSN 0006-324X. S2CID 86265294.
  3. ^ Braid, Heather E.; McBride, Paul D.; Bolstad, Kathrin S. R. (2013-12-18). "Molecular phylogenetic analysis of the squid family Mastigoteuthidae (Mollusca, Cephalopoda) based on three mitochondrial genes". Hydrobiologia. 725 (1): 145–164. doi:10.1007/s10750-013-1775-3. ISSN 0018-8158. S2CID 254545228.
  4. ^ Young, Richard E.; Vecchione, Michael; Braid, Heather E. (2014-12-05). "Mastigotragus, a new generic name for Mastigoteuthis pyrodes Young, 1972 (Cephalopoda: Mastigoteuthidae)". European Journal of Taxonomy (105). doi:10.5852/ejt.2014.105. ISSN 2118-9773.