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DiscoverSpeciesCephalopods

Chiroteuthis imperator

  • Cephalopods
  • IUCN: Least concern
  • Usual depth315–1,154 m
  • Water temperature18–29 °C
  • Best monthsFebruary
  • How commonRare
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About this species

Chiroteuthis imperator, or the emperor squid, is a species of chiroteuthid squid. It lives off the coast of Sumatra in the Indo-Pacific Ocean. It grows to a mantle length of 30 cm (12 in), and has incredibly long arms which give it a total length of probably 1.6 m.

Text from the Wikipedia article “Chiroteuthis imperator”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article

Where and when

Where it has been recorded

Worldwide

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Best months

Worldwide (open data)

  • January: 9 records
  • February: 19 records
  • March: 2 records
  • April: 4 records
  • May: 2 records
  • June: 7 records
  • July: 4 records
  • August: 5 records
  • September: 3 records
  • October: 3 records
  • November: 5 records
  • December: 2 records

Depth and water temperature

Depth

Mostly recorded at 315–1,154 m · Deepest record: 1,440 m

  • 100–110 m: 1 records
  • 110–120 m: 0 records
  • 120–130 m: 0 records
  • 130–140 m: 0 records
  • 140–150 m: 0 records
  • 150–160 m: 0 records
  • 160–170 m: 0 records
  • 170–180 m: 0 records
  • 180–190 m: 0 records
  • 190–200 m: 0 records
  • 200–210 m: 0 records
  • 210+ m: 26 records

Water temperature

Recorded in surface water of 18–29 °C

  • 16–18 °C: 1 records
  • 18–20 °C: 1 records
  • 20–22 °C: 6 records
  • 22–24 °C: 11 records
  • 24–26 °C: 5 records
  • 26–28 °C: 23 records
  • 28–30 °C: 22 records

Names and classification

Names in 2 more languages
Japanese
ユウレイイカ
Thai
ปลาหนวดหนวดแส้แปซิฟิก

Sources and credits

Names and taxonomy: WoRMS (CC BY 4.0) and the GBIF Backbone (CC BY 4.0). Photos: iNaturalist observers, each under the licence shown (CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA).

  • Depth, temperature, months and maps: records from OBIS and GBIF under CC0 or CC BY.
  • Descriptions: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA, each linked to its article.
  • Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
  • 70 open-data records from 1906 to 2004.
  • Species data updated October 26, 2026.

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