Dwarf cuttlefish

Sepia bandensis

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Cephalopoda
Order: Sepiida
Family: Sepiidae
Genus: Sepia
Species: Sepia bandensis

The dwarf cuttlefish (Sepia bandensis) is a tiny Indo-Pacific cuttlefish, rarely longer than 7-8 cm, that changes colour and texture in an instant to vanish against sand, rubble and seagrass.

Like other cuttlefish it has eight arms and two long feeding tentacles that shoot out to grab shrimp, small crabs and fish, and an internal cuttlebone that lets it hover perfectly still. It often 'walks' slowly over the bottom using its arms while flashing mottled browns, greens and white patches.

Dwarf cuttlefish live fast, growing to adulthood and breeding within a year. They are common in shallow, sheltered muck and seagrass sites across the Philippines and are a fun, easy-going subject for macro photographers.