Most studies regarding the distinct camouflage abilities of cephalopods focus mainly on cuttlefishes and octopi. However, a recent study by Japan-based researchers found that like their cephalopod relatives; squids can also camouflage using chromatophores.
Squids, Like Cuttlefish, Can Camouflage Too
A cuttlefish swims in an aquarium at the Scientific Center of Kuwait on March 20, 2016
In a recent study published in the journal Scientific Reports, titled "Squid adjust their body color according to substrate" researchers from Okinawa, Japan was able to observe oval squids adapting their skin's coloration via chromatophores according to the substrate in the cephalopod's substrate.
Up until recently, transparency has been believed as the main culprit behind the squid's ability to camouflage. These past years, studies have focused mainly on cuttlefish and octopus because of their unique ability to match and mimic their background along the seafloor and coral reefs. Squids, on the other hand, live in the open ocean and do not face the same predators as their relative cephalopods and their defenses change. Hence, they are less likely to be seen adapting to their backgrounds.
Meanwhile, a group of researchers from the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University performed controlled experiments in an effort to see how squid, in captivity, would camouflage to the substrate. An OIST visiting researcher, Dr. Ryuta Nakajima, explains that he wanted to see how the squid would react when chased by a predator near the ocean floor or coral reefs, reports WTSP.
Additionally, the study was prompted when researchers were cleaning one of the tanks and noticed how the captive squids would change color depending on which side of the tank it was in - the cleaned or algae-ridden side.
During the experiment, researchers put underwater cameras inside the tank and placed regular cameras above. There, the team watched the movement of the squid between the algae-ridden side and the clean side of the tank.
Observation showed how the squids were transparent when they resided on the tank's clean side and quickly became darker when moving to the tank's algae-filled side. Researchers were able to uncover the squid's ability that has never been recorded in a controlled experiment in the past. The team learned that the squid will camouflage to match the tank's substrate in order to survive.
Nakajima explains that if the substrate is vita to squids avoiding predation then it would indicate that the increase or decrease in the population of squids is more tied to the health of the coral reef.
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Squid Breakthrough
The first-ever experiment to uncover the squid's camouflage abilities highlighted new avenues for exploring the animal's visual capabilities.
Dr. Zdenek Lajbner explains that the effects of the squid's camouflage are striking. Showing that science knows little about the animals. Dr. Nakajimi says in a statement that the particular squid, the oval squid, is vital for Okinawa for both economic and cultural reasons. Stating that it was the local fishermen that were first able to distinguish three species of oval squids in the province, long before scientists.
The team hope's that the recent study will lead to more research and findings regarding the species and other cephalopods.
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