Our website is made possible by displaying online advertisements to our visitors.
Please consider supporting us by disabling your ad blocker.
Vampyromorphida
| Vampyromorphida Temporal range:
| |
|---|---|
| |
| Vampyroteuthis infernalis | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Cephalopoda |
| Superorder: | Octopodiformes |
| Order: | Vampyromorphida Pickford, 1939 |
| Suborders | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Vampyromorphida is an order of cephalopods comprising one known extant species (Vampyroteuthis infernalis) and many extinct taxa. Physically, they somewhat resemble octopuses (their closest relatives), but are often called vampire squids. Unlike octopuses, their eight arms are united by a web of skin, and two smaller cilia are also present.[1] Properly speaking, the vampire squid does not possess cilia, but cirri (cilia-like projections).[2] Unlike most cephalopods, which are high-energy hunters, the vampire squid has an extremely low metabolic rate. This adaptation means it requires less oxygen and its food lasts longer, helping it conserve energy and thrive in these harsh deep-sea conditions. Studies show its oxygen consumption is among the lowest of any cephalopod, allowing it to occupy a competition-free niche in the deep sea where few predators or competitors can follow, since not many can survive.[3]
- ^ Barnes, Robert D. (1982). Invertebrate Zoology. Philadelphia, PA: Holt-Saunders International. p. 461. ISBN 0-03-056747-5.
- ^ Hoving, Hendrik J. T.; Robison, Bruce H. (22 November 2012). "Vampire squid: detritivores in the oxygen minimum zone". Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 279 (1747): 4559–4567. doi:10.1098/rspb.2012.1357. PMC 3479720. PMID 23015627.
- ^ Seibel, B. A., Thuesen, E. V., Childress, J. J., & Gorodezky, L. A. (1999). Decline in pelagic cephalopod metabolism with habitat depth reflects differences in locomotory efficiency. Biological Bulletin, 197(2), 207–225.
Previous Page Next Page
