Family JOUBINITEUTHIDAE

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Introduction

Joubiniteuthis portieri (Joubin), the sole species in the rare family Joubiniteuthidae Naef, 1922, is easily recognised by its slender tail which projects beyond the mantle by slightly more than its own length, and small oval subterminal fins. Joubiniteuthis portieri was first recorded from eastern Australian waters by Lu & Phillips (1985). It has a soft gelatinous body and is very rarely caught. Less than 20 specimens are known worldwide (Young & Roper 1969).

Males reach maturity at less than 105 mm mantle length (ML) (Young & Roper 1969) while an 85 mm female from off Japan was still immature. The female reproductive system is typically oegopsid, and has paired nidamental glands (Okutani & Kubota 1972). No information regarding the life history is available. Individuals have been recovered from among the stomach contents of a lancetfish stranded off eastern Japan (Okutani & Kubota 1972).

The vertical distribution of this species is poorly known. Atlantic specimens examined by Young and Roper (1969) were caught at depths of between 330 and 2500 m. Okutani and Kubota (1972) concluded that the specimen recovered from a lancetfish stomach was captured in the upper 150 m, possibly indicating that adult joubiniteuthids occupy a broad depth range.

Diagnosis

This monotypic family is characterised by a slender tail projecting beyond the mantle which is slightly longer than the rest of the body, and small oval subterminal fins. Arms are elongate and slender (more than twice the mantle length) with up to six rows of suckers on each of the dorsal, lateral and dorso-lateral arms and four rows on the ventral arms. The tentacles are long and thread-like with a laterally compressed club carrying up to 12 rows of small, smooth, ringed suckers. The distal tip of the club is bordered by a distinct protective membrane with no apparent supports. The funnel locking cartilage is small and oval and the buccal connectives attach to the ventral border of the ventral arms. Photophores are absent and males show no evidence of hectocotylisation.

General References

Lu, C.C. & Phillips, J.U. 1985. An annotated checklist of Cephalopoda from Australian waters. Occasional Papers of the Museum of Victoria 2: 21-36

Okutani, T. & Kubota, T. 1972. Rare and interesting squid from Japan. 1. Joubiniteuthis portieri (Joubin, 1912), the first occurrence from the Pacific (Cephalopoda: Oegopsida). Venus 31: 35-40

Young, R.E. & Roper, C.F.E. 1969. A monograph of the Cephalopoda of the North Atlantic: the family Cycloteuthidae. Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology 5: 1-24

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