| Enchoteuthis Temporal range: Late Cretaceous | |
|---|---|
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| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusc |
| Subphylum: | Conchifera |
| Clade: | Cephalopoda |
| Order: | Octopoda |
| Suborder: | †Teudopseina |
| Family: | †Muensterellidae |
| Subfamily: | †Enchoteuthinae |
| Genus: | †Enchoteuthis Miller & Walker, 1968 |
| Species: | †E. melanae
†E. cobbani †E. tonii |
| Type species | |
| †Enchoteuthis melanae Miller & Walker, 1968 | |
| Synonyms | |
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Enchoteuthis is an extinct genus of Cretaceous squid-like Octopus.
Etymology[]
The name Enchoteuthis is derived from the Greek enchos ("spear"), and teuthis ("squid"). The specific epithet, melanae, honours the discoverer of the holotype specimen, Melanie Bonner. Another species, E cobbani, is named after William Cobban.
Taxonomy[]
Though previously believed to be related to the vampire squid, it has more recently been found that Enchoteuthis and other members of the Muensterelloidea are an ancient group of primitive Octopus. Three species of Enchoteuthis are hitherto known: E. cobbani, E. melanae, and E. tonii.
Paleoecology[]
A fossil of the predatory salmonid, Cimolichthys nepaholica, was found with the gladius of E. cobbani in its gullet. The back portion of the gladius was in the stomach region, while the mouth of C. nepaholica had remained opened, suggesting that the fish had died in the middle of swallowing the Octopus, tail first. Researchers strongly suspect that as the fish was swallowing Enchoteuthis, the head and or tentacles remained outside the mouth, thus blocking the gills of the fish, and suffocating it as it swallowed its prey.[1]