“Instead of projecting light outwards, what these photophores do is radiate light within the body tissue. “Humboldt squids have small aggregations of luminescent tissue-little dots sprinkled throughout their muscles,” Burford says. Lead author Burford found that the Humboldt squid’s use of bioluminescence is unique. Some creatures present bioluminescent displays that are sex- and species-specific, allowing them to identify others within their species and gender. One famous example is the anglerfish and its luminescent lure. Many deep-sea creatures use bioluminescence for defense, camouflage and predatory behaviors. (The Humboldt squid, and the current of the same name it is native to, is named after Alexander von Humboldt, an influential naturalist and the subject of a forthcoming exhibit at the Smithsonian American Art Museum.)Ī Humboldt squid displays a "countershading" pattern on its body (dark on top, light underneath) 500 meters below the surface of Monterey Bay. Much like an e-reader that layers text over a lighting layer, the Humboldt squid layers chromatophores on top of photophores to make their displays easier to see in the dark. New research by Ben Burford of Stanford University and Bruce Robison of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) suggests that the Humboldt squid uses bioluminescent light organs known as photophores to backlight their visual displays. While researchers understood these abilities, a question remained regarding just how deep-sea cephalopods might make these displays visible in their dark, deep environment. These marine creatures possess pigment cells called chromatophores surrounded by muscles that expand and contract, allowing for a wide variety of colorful patterns. Yet the Humboldt squid ( Dosidicus giga), a social species that lives in groups of hundreds of individuals, can communicate visually at depths of 600 feet or more.Ĭephalopods including squid, octopus and cuttlefish are known for a stunning array of visual displays. The deep sea is vast, empty and dark-not an ideal place for animals to communicate via visual signals.
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