Bullet Cuttlefish

Lusepia hieronis

Cephalopods
IUCN: Not evaluated

Usual depth129–280 m
Water temperature14–25 °C
Best monthsJanuary
How commonOccasional

About this species

Lusepia hieronis is a species of cuttlefish native to the southeastern Atlantic Ocean and southwestern Indian Ocean, specifically southern Namibia, from approximately 27°S to Port Alfred, South Africa, and east Africa from 17°S to Kenya and Mozambique. It is also present in the Saya-de-Malha Bank. It lives at depths of between 43 and 500 m, although it is most abundant at 110 to 250 m depth.

Text from the Wikipedia article “Lusepia hieronis”, 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: 922 records
February: 473 records
March: 3 records
April: 184 records
May: 124 records
June: 97 records
July: 196 records
August: 161 records
September: 146 records
October: 58 records
November: 0 records
December: 0 records

Depth and water temperature

Depth

Mostly recorded at 129–280 m · Deepest record: 504 m

20–30 m: 1 records
30–40 m: 1 records
40–50 m: 5 records
50–60 m: 2 records
60–70 m: 1 records
70–80 m: 5 records
80–90 m: 9 records
90–100 m: 16 records
100–110 m: 26 records
110–120 m: 20 records
120–130 m: 32 records
130+ m: 1,056 records

Water temperature

Recorded in surface water of 14–25 °C

14–16 °C: 264 records
16–18 °C: 404 records
18–20 °C: 295 records
20–22 °C: 32 records
22–24 °C: 1 records
24–26 °C: 2 records

Names and classification

English: Bullet Cuttlefish

Names in 1 more languages

Japanese: カワリコウイカ

Other scientific names: Rhombosepion hieronis, Sepia hieronis

Similar species

Acanthosepion ellipticum
Pharaoh Cuttlefish
Acanthosepion pharaonis
Smith's Cuttlefish
Acanthosepion smithi
Australian Giant Cuttlefish
Ascarosepion apama
Broadclub Cuttlefish
Ascarosepion latimanus
Reaper Cuttlefish
Ascarosepion mestus

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).
2,368 open-data records from 1924 to 2012.
Species data updated November 4, 2026.

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