Short sex-filled life of an Australian dumpling squid

Will Ferguson, reporter

(Image: Norbert Wu/Minden/Getty)

This promiscuous species of squid pays a dear price for an insatiable sex-drive.

After three hours of lovemaking, southern dumpling squid are so exhausted that their ability to avoid predators and forage for food is sorely reduced. An ability to blend into their surroundings helps them survive this post-coital lapse - but only to some extent.

Researchers at the University of Melbourne collected dumpling squid off the coast of southeastern Australia and evaluated the effects of their extensive mating ritual on swimming endurance before and after sex.

The ritual doesn't include much foreplay. The male grabs the female from underneath, and holds her in place throughout copulation. The researchers found that for thirty minutes afterwards, swimming ability in both sexes halved, rendering the squid vulnerable to predators and unable to forage for food.

The squid can partially compensate for this. Both male and female can change colour from sandy yellow to dark purple with green and orange highlights in order to blend into their surroundings. They also have the ability produce a cloud of ink as a decoy to help them escape from predators.

However, their methods aren't always effective. Most dumpling squid only manage to survive for less than a year, which the researchers believe might be a direct result of their risky, sex-filled lifestyle.

Zoologist Amanda Franklin led the study published in Biology Letters (DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2012.0556).

Source: http://feeds.newscientist.com/c/749/f/10897/s/2179326b/l/0L0Snewscientist0N0Cblogs0Cshortsharpscience0C20A120C0A70Cshort0Esex0Efilled0Elife0Eof0Ean0Eau0Bhtml0DDCMP0FOTC0Erss0Gnsref0Fonline0Enews/story01.htm

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