''Japetella'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

of pelagic octopods from the subfamily

Bolitaeninae The Bolitaeninae are a subfamily, in the Family (biology), family Amphitretidae, of small, common pelagic zone, pelagic octopuses found in all tropical and temperate oceans of the world. The Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy of this taxon is not entir ...

in the family

Amphitretidae Amphitretidae is a Family (biology), family of mesopelagic octopods which contains three subfamily, subfamilies, formerly classified as families in their own right. It is classified in the Superfamily (taxonomy), superfamily Octopodoidea. Species ...

. It contains at least one species but another two have been questionably raised with ''Japetella heathi'' being of doubtful validity, although currently accepted and ''Japetella taningi'' being classed as a ''nomen dubium''. The genus contains

bioluminescent Bioluminescence is the emission of light during a chemiluminescence reaction by living organisms. Bioluminescence occurs in multifarious organisms ranging from marine vertebrates and invertebrates, as well as in some fungi, microorganisms inc ...

species. ''Japetella diaphana'' inhabits the

oxygen minimum zone The oxygen minimum zone (OMZ), sometimes referred to as the shadow zone, is the zone in which oxygen saturation in seawater in the ocean is at its lowest. This zone occurs at depths of about , depending on local circumstances. OMZs are found wor ...

of the eastern tropical

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

. It is a species of midwater octopus which is relatively abundant in the Gulf of Mexico compared to the Monterey Bay. It has a bioluminescent, yellow ring which starts at the base of its arms, of which all are of the same size. The arms are also very short, no longer than the mantle length. Total length may be around . It has been proposed that the female octopus uses the ring to communicate with the opposite gender, perhaps to attract the male to mate. Its chromatophores allow it to go almost fully transparent with spots, to be of a solid orange. The octopus never touches the seafloor, living its entire life in the water column. Mature adults usually live at a depth of , while mating occurs at . The female's bioluminescent ring may be of a specific wavelength, to prevent miscommunication and predator attraction. After mating, the female ascends to a depth of .

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q3805229 Octopuses Cephalopod genera Bioluminescent molluscs