Flamboyant cuttlefish
Metasepia pfefferi
- Scientific name
- Metasepia pfefferi
- Group
- Cephalopods
- Rarity
- Rare
- Where to see it
- Indo-Pacific & Red Sea
- Conservation status (IUCN)
- Data deficient
Did you know?
The flamboyant cuttlefish prefers walking along the seafloor on its arms rather than swimming. Its pulsing colors aren't just for show: it's one of the few genuinely toxic cephalopods, and the display warns predators to keep away.
What defines this group — Cephalopods
Octopuses, cuttlefish, squid and nautiluses: molluscs that became the most intelligent invertebrates.
- Eight arms — ten in cuttlefish and squid — set around a horny beak.
- Skin cells called chromatophores change colour and texture in a fraction of a second.
- Three hearts, and blue blood that carries oxygen with copper rather than iron.