Cirroteuthidae is a

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

of pelagic cirrate

octopus An octopus (: octopuses or octopodes) is a soft-bodied, eight-limbed mollusc of the order Octopoda (, ). The order consists of some 300 species and is grouped within the class Cephalopoda with squids, cuttlefish, and nautiloids. Like oth ...

es comprising at least five species in three

genera Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family as used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In binomial nomenclature, the genus name forms the first part of the binomial s ...

Description

The cirrate octopods have a unique internal shell, positioned dorsally above the viscera and with a 'saddle-like' shape in ''Cirroteuthis'' (or 'butterfly-like' in ''Cirrothauma'' and ''Inopinoteuthis'' due to the anterior corners being more drawn out). The lateral faces of the 'saddle' acting as large attachment sites for fin muscles, supporting proportionally large and powerful fins. The arms are elongate and have both a primary web, forming most of the webbing, and a secondary web connecting the primary webbing to the aboral (outer) faces of each arm. The cirri, pairs of small finger-like projections between each sucker, are very elongate. Both the elongate cirri and secondary web are features shared with Stauroteuthidae, but no other cirrate family.

Taxonomy

The family Cirroteuthidae contains three accepted genera containing at least four species, but also some possibly undescribed taxa. *Genus '' Cirroteuthis'' Eschricht, 1838. **'' Cirroteuthis muelleri'' Eschricht, 1838 **'' Cirroteuthis kirrilyae'' Verhoeff & O'Shea, 2025 *Genus '' Cirrothauma'' Chun, 1911 **'' Cirrothauma murrayi'' Chun, 1911'':'' often known as the blind cirrate. *Genus '' Inopinoteuthis'' Verhoeff & O'Shea, 2025 **'' Inopinoteuthis magna'' (Hoyle, 1885): originally described in genus ''Cirroteuthis.'' **''Inopinoteuthis hoylei'' (Robson, 1932): originally described in genus ''Cirroteuthis''''.'' There are also two genera of uncertain affinity placed in this family, but both are in need of critical assessment. * '' Laetmoteuthis'' Berry, 1913 * '' Froekenia'' Hoyle, 1904: One described species ('' Froekenia clara'') and an undescribed species, quite likely synonymous with '' Stauroteuthis'' given shell form.

References

External links

Tree of Life website gives information about the classification of cephalopod groupsCirroteuthidae discussion forum at TONMO.com
{{octopus-stub

References

Octopuses Cephalopod families Taxa named by Wilhelm Moritz Keferstein