Teuthology

Teuthology (from Greek τεῦθος, "cuttlefish, squid", and -λογία, -logia)^[1] is the study of cephalopods, which are members of the class Cephalopoda in the phylum Mollusca. Some common examples of cephalopods are octopus, squid, and cuttlefish. Teuthology is a large area of study that covers cephalopod life cycles, reproduction, evolution, anatomy, and taxonomy.

A common octopus (Octopus vulgaris)

Caribbean reef squid Sepioteuthis sepioidea on Bari Reef, Bonaire, BES Islands

Large cuttlefish Sepia sp. from Komodo National Park

Researching teuthologist, Heather Judkins is a faculty member at University of South Florida (USF). This image is from the USF website, specifically her research lab's website.

Teuthology is a specific branch of malacology, the study of molluscs. A teuthologist is a scientist who studies teuthology.

Research Highlights

2023

The publication of the English translation of Albin O Ebersbach's thesis on the detailed descriptions of cirrate octopods marks an expansion of access to important taxonomical identifying information in teuthology.^[2]

The third paper in the series led by Tristian Joseph Verhoeff revisiting cirrate octopods is published.^[3]

2022

Several papers describing new species of cephalopods were published this year. Two of the papers were the beginning of the series led by Tristian Joseph Verhoeff describing new cirrate octopods discovered around Australia and New Zealand.^[4][5] The third paper describes two new Sepiolina species also discovered in Australian waters.^[6]

Organizations

The Cephalopod International Advisory Council (CIAC) is a group founded by teuthologists to discuss advancements and growth of cephalopod research.^{[7][more detail needed]}

See also

• Cephalopods topics
• Marine biology
• Teuthology topics