Octopoteuthis deletron
Encyclopedia
Octopoteuthis deletron is a species of squid
Squid
Squid are cephalopods of the order Teuthida, which comprises around 300 species. Like all other cephalopods, squid have a distinct head, bilateral symmetry, a mantle, and arms. Squid, like cuttlefish, have eight arms arranged in pairs and two, usually longer, tentacles...

 in the genus Octopoteuthis. Found at depths of 400 to 800 m in the Pacific Ocean, they grow to at least 24 cm. Males find it difficult to detect the gender of other individuals they encounter in the dark depths, so they have adopted a strategy of attaching sperm packets to all individuals they meet.

Ecology

O. deletron are the most common species found in the stomachs of northern elephant seal
Northern Elephant Seal
The northern elephant seal is one of two species of elephant seal . It is a member of the family Phocidae . Elephant seals derive their name from their great size and from the male's large proboscis, which is used in making extraordinarily loud roaring noises, especially during the mating...

s sampled off the coast of California. It is an important prey item of the giant grenadier
Giant grenadier
The giant grenadier, Albatrossia pectoralis , is a very large rattail, the only member of the genus Albatrossia, found in the north Pacific from northern Japan to the Okhotsk and Bering seas, east to the Gulf of Alaska, and south to northern Baja California in Mexico, at depths of between 140 and...

.
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