Species Spirula spirula (Linnaeus, 1758)

Museums

Regional Maps

• Spirula spirula Linnaeus, 1758.
• Spirula peronii Lamarck, J.B.P.A. de M. 1822. Histoire naturelle des Animaux sans Vertèbres. Paris : J.B. Lamarck Vol. 7 711 pp. [601].
• Nautilus spirula Linnaeus, C. 1758. Systema naturae per regna tria naturae, secundem classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentis, synonymis, locis. Editio decima, reformata. Holmiae : Laurentii Salvii Vol. 1 10, 824 pp. [710].

  Type data:

   Holotype LS, 'in America'.

 

Generic Combinations

• Spirula spirula (Linnaeus, 1758). —
  Lamarck, J.B. 1801. Système des animaux sans vertèbres, ou, tableau général des classes, des ordres et des genres de ces animaus; présentant leurs caractères essentials et leur distribution, d'après la considération de leurs rapports naturels et de leur organisation, et suivant l'arrangement établi dans les galeries du Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle, parmi leurs dépouilles conservées; précéde du Discours d'ouverture de l'an VIII de la République. Paris : Déterville viii 432 pp. [102] (changed combination as type species of the genus Spirula)

 

Introduction

Hoffmann et al. (2021) question whether there are more than one extant species in the genus Spirula, see Introduction to the genus. Thought to be restricted to tropical and subtropical oceanic waters where water temperature at 400 m is 10ºC or warmer, however Lindsay et al. (2020) observed an individual between 837–860 m depth at a height of ~1100 m above the seafloor on the continental slope of the far northern Great Barrier Reef, Queensland Australia where temperature was reported as 5.33C, salinity 34.44 ppt. (Lindsay et al. 2020)

 

Distribution

States

New South Wales, Queensland, Western Australia

Extra Distribution Information

Circumtropical in oceanic waters near oceanic islands and the continental shelf where the water temperature at 400 m is 10ºC or warmer, however see Lindsay et al. (2020). Known distribution is patchy and confused by beach wash shell and whole animal records.

IBRA and IMCRA regions

IMCRA

Central Eastern Province (12), Tasman Basin Province (13), Lord Howe Province (14), Central Eastern Transition (15), Kenn Transition (16), Kenn Province (17), Northeast Province (18), Northeast Transition (19), Timor Province (2), Cape Province (20), Norfolk Island Province (21), Cocos (Keeling) Island Province (22), Christmas Island Province (23), Northwest Transition (3), Northwest Province (4), Central Western Transition (5), Central Western Province (6), Southwest Transition (7)

Distribution References

Ecological Descriptors

Oceanic, subtropical, temperate, tropical.

 

General References

Hoffmann, R., Weinkauf, M.F.G., Fuchs, D. & Lukeneder, A. 2021. Is there more than one species in the genus Spirula (Cephalopoda: Decabrachia): evidence for an Atlantic–Pacific divide. Journal of Molluscan Studies 87(eyab001): 1- 12 [1-12]

Lindsay, D.J., Hunt, J.C., McNeil, M., Beaman, R.J. & Vecchione, M. 2020. The first in-situ observation of the Ram’s Horn Squid Spirula spirula turns “Common Knowledge” upside down. Diversity 12(449): 1-6

Norman, M. 2000. Cephalopods, a world guide. Hakenheim : ConchBooks 320 pp. [37] (biology)

Reid, A. 2005. Family Spirulidae. pp. 211-212 in Jereb, P. & Roper, C.F.E. (Eds). Cephalopods of the world. An annotated and illustrated catalogue of species known to date. Volume 1. Chambered nautiluses and sepioids (Nautilidae, Sepiidae, Sepiolidae, Sepiadariidae, Idiosepiidae and Spirulidae). FAO Species Catalogue for Fishery Purposes. No. 4 Rome : FAO Vol. 1 pp. 1-262. [211] (diagnostic features, geographical distribution, habitat and biology)

Reid, A. 2016. Cephalopods of Australia and Sub-Antarctic Territories. Clayton South, Victoria : CSIRO Publishing pp. 446. [296]

 

Common Name References

Norman, M.D. & Reid, A.L. 2000. A Guide to Squid, Cuttlefish and Octopus of Australasia. Collingwood : CSIRO Publishing 96 pp. [21] (Ram's Horn Squid)

 

History of changes

Published	As part of group	Action Date	Action Type	Compiler(s)
05-Jun-2024	CEPHALOPODA Cuvier, 1795	29-May-2023	MODIFIED	Dr Mandy Reid
16-Jun-2022	CEPHALOPODA	11-Feb-2023	MODIFIED
12-Nov-2013	SEPIIDA	04-Nov-2013	MODIFIED	Dr Julian Finn (NMV)
		24-Jan-2011	MODIFIED