Firefly Squid

The firefly squid, also commonly known as the sparkling enope squid or hotaru-ika in Japan, is a species of squid in the family Enoploteuthidae. It is the sole species in the monotypic genus Watasenia. The firefly squid belongs to the Cephalopoda class and the superorder Decapodiformes, commonly known as squid. Their body is divided between a distinct head and a mantle, and the layout of the body is bilaterally symmetrical. They are soft-bodied organisms which contain a skeletal structure composed of chitin. They have relatively large eyes, eight arms, and two tentacles. They are further classified into the order Oegopsida for possessing the characteristic traits of having no tentacle pockets in the head and no suckers on the buccal supports. They belong to the family of Enoploteuthidae, based on the hooks on their tentacles.

Scientific name: Watasenia scintillans

Rank: Species

Higher classification: Watasenia

Size: three inches

Family: Enoploteuthidae

Kingdom: Animalia

Order: Oegopsida

Distribution:

The firefly squid inhabits the waters off the coast of Japan. The depth at which these squids can be found varies (300–400 m or 1,000–1,300 ft during the day, and 20–60 m or 70–200 ft during the night) over the course of a day, as they are one of the several species of squid that participates in diel vertical migration. For this reason, they also experience a significant change in environmental temperatures throughout the course of a day(3–6 °C or 37–43 °F during the day and 5–15 °C or 41–59 °F during the night). The firefly squid is especially well known for its yearly migration to the coastal waters of Toyama Bay for the purpose of reproduction.