Enchoteuthis
Sign in to saveEnchoteuthis (meaning "spear squid") is an extinct genus of large enchoteuthine cephalopod that lived during the Cretaceous. Although it and its relative Tusoteuthis are often compared to squid, both are now thought to be more closely related to modern octopuses. Examination of gladius remains initially yielded an estimated mantle length of about based on one specimen once described as Tusoteuthis longa, which is close to or equal to that of the modern giant squid, although reclassification of this genus as a muensterelloid results in a longer total length, about . Three species are currently
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Enchoteuthis (meaning "spear squid") is an extinct genus of large enchoteuthine cephalopod that lived during the Cretaceous. Although it and its relative Tusoteuthis are often compared to squid, both are now thought to be more closely related to modern octopuses. Examination of gladius remains initially yielded an estimated mantle length of about based on one specimen once described as Tusoteuthis longa, which is close to or equal to that of the modern giant squid, although reclassification of this genus as a muensterelloid results in a longer total length, about . Three species are currently recognized as valid: E. melanae, E. tonii, and E. cobbani.
==Etymology== The generic name Enchoteuthis is derived from the Greek enchos ("spear") and teuthis ("squid"). The specific name melanae honors Melanie Bonner, who discovered the holotype. E. cobbani is named after William Cobban.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Enchoteuthis” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.