New Zealand arrow squid
Nototodarus sloanii
- Usual depth59–520 m
- Water temperature8–23 °C
- Best monthsAugust
- How commonCommon
Photo credit: (c) Jenny Saito, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
About this species
Nototodarus sloanii is a species of squid commonly known as the New Zealand arrow squid or Wellington flying squid. It is also known by its Māori name of wheketere. It is a favoured prey species of a number of marine mammals and seabirds. It is an important food source for the New Zealand fur seal and two endangered species: the New Zealand sea lion and the yellow-eyed penguin. Nototodarus sloanii is sought by trawler fishermen for human consumption; New Zealand sea lions are frequently caught in trawl nets and drowned when feeding on N. sloanii.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Nototodarus sloanii”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article
Where and when
Where it has been recorded
Worldwide
Loading the map
Best months
Worldwide (open data)
- January: 1 records
- February: 3 records
- March: 6 records
- April: 5 records
- May: 1 records
- June: 2 records
- July: 1 records
- August: 22 records
- September: 0 records
- October: 2 records
- November: 1 records
- December: 0 records
Depth and water temperature
Depth
Mostly recorded at 59–520 m · Deepest record: 1,308 m
Water temperature
Recorded in surface water of 8–23 °C
Photos
no rights reserved · CC0 1.0 · iNaturalist
Names and classification
- English
- New Zealand arrow squid, Wellington flying squid, Wheketere
Names in 3 more languages
- German
- Wellington-Flugkalmar
- French
- encornet minami
- Japanese
- ニュージーランドスルメイカ
Other scientific names: Ommastrephes sloanii
Similar species
Gould's flying squidNototodarus gouldi
- Hawaiian flying squid
Nototodarus hawaiiensis
AkaikaOmmastrephes bartramii
Purpleback flying squidSthenoteuthis oualaniensis
- Luminous flying squid
Eucleoteuthis luminosa
- Glass squid
Hyaloteuthis pelagica
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).
- 13,066 open-data records from 1917 to 2022.
- Species data updated November 5, 2026.
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