Range: Coastal waters around New Zealand, Australia, and Japan Habitat: Substrate and near seagrass beds Size: About 1.5 inches (40mm) long Diet: Crustaceans and fish Threats: Fish and more Life span: One year or less

Transcript:

Today on animal fact files we’re talking about pajama squids and their relatives. Pajama squids are classified in the bottletail squid family. There are currently fewer than ten classified species of these little animals, but more information could lead to the classification of more species.

These tiny animals seem like they would be easy to identify in the wild, I mean, look at that fancy PJ pattern, but in truth these aren’t the easiest animals to spot! For starters, bottletail squids are… well… okay first we need to set this straight. These animals have the common name “squid” but they aren’t actually squids. Pajama and other bottletail squids are actually cuttlefish!

Anyway, moving on… these little cuttlefish are experts of camouflage. Not only can they change color like other cuttlefish species, pajama and other bottletail squids hide themselves in the sand. These cephalopods are benthic creatures meaning they spend their time at the bottom of the water column. They are found in shallow tropical and subtropical waters of the western and central Pafic waters including the coasts of New Zealand, Australia, and Japan. During the day, bottletail squids hide themselves under the sand with only their eyes poking out. They quickly move back and forth until they’re almost completely covered and they’ll use their arms to cover any parts they missed. From this position, they are hidden both from predators and prey.

Pajama and other bottletail squid eat small crustaceans including shrimp as well as small fish. They’ll sit below the sand and wait for something to pass by at which point they’ll strike and catch their prey. These cephalopods also come out of the sand at night and stalk the ocean floor. They’re mostly found in soft bottom substrate like sand and they can also be seen along the edges of seagrass beds. It’s believed that they have a toxic bite to their prey and they may even be poisonous - which means they are potentially both venomous and poisonous. This isn’t typical, but the confusion between these two words often causes miscommunication.

If an animal is venomous, then it is able to inject a toxin into another animal. If an animal is poisonous, then when that animal is touched or eaten it passively delivers toxin to whatever touched or consumed it. So, venomous animals, like black widows or bush vipers, have to actively take part in delivering their toxins to another animal. Poisonous animals, like dart frogs, don’t have to actively take part in passing on their toxins. Anyway, we’ve gotten a little sidetracked, and it’s not even confirmed if bottletail squids are both poisonous and venomous, that remains to be seen with more research. What is confirmed, however, is that these cephalopods secrete a slime when they’re disturbed. The reason for this is also unknown, but they definitely do it.

Another reason these animals are so difficult to spot in the wild is that they’re super small. Like the blue ringed octopus we’ve talked about in a previous episode, these little cephalopods only reach just over an inch and a half (40mm) in mantle length, though those oddball pajama squids can nearly double this size! So trying to find one of these in the wild might be a feat, but they certainly have ways to find each other.

Pajama and other bottletail squids mate face to face. The male has a specialized arm that he can use to pass on a packet of sperm to his lady lover. He’ll also use this arm to attempt to scoop out any sperm left behind by the female’s previous suitors. These cuttlefish mate from an early age, and females are able to storm sperm until they’re ready to lay eggs. The eggs are about 10mm across and are laid individually or in small clusters at the base of seaweed or under hard surfaces like rocks. The babies hatch within two weeks and look like smaller versions of their parents. They don’t swim around long and settle to the seafloor within minutes of hatching, covering themselves with sand in the process. Like other cephalopods, bottletail squids typically have short lifespans, potentially living less than a year.

For more facts on pajama squids and their relatives, check out the links in the description. Thank you to Sizzle for today’s request. Give a thumbs up if you learned something new today, and thank you for watching Animal Fact Files.