''Galeoctopus lateralis'', the sharkclub octopus, is a species of

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 ...

, from the

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 ...

Octopodidae The Octopodidae comprise the family containing the majority of known octopus species (about 175 species). Genera The World Register of Marine Species lists these 23 genera: *'' Abdopus'' Norman & Finn, 2001 (7 species) *'' Ameloctopus'' Norman, ...

. This species was described in 2004 from specimens collected at depths of 200–400 m in the southern and western Pacific Ocean. It is a small octopus in which the mature males have a distinctive ligula which superficially resembles a shark's jaw and head including teeth‐like lugs. Other distinguishing characteristics include a lateral mantle ridge, a skin sculpture which includes star-shaped papillae, and the females have

oviduct The oviduct in vertebrates is the passageway from an ovary. In human females, this is more usually known as the fallopian tube. The eggs travel along the oviduct. These eggs will either be fertilized by spermatozoa to become a zygote, or will dege ...

s with hare distally swollen. Abstract.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q18580680 Octopuses Cephalopod genera Cephalopods described in 2004