Market Squid
Doryteuthis opalescens
An iridescent jet swimmer with a one-year adventure.
Market squid flicker with changing color as huge schools cruise the Pacific coast. Near the end of their short lives, adults gather over sandy seafloor to lay forests of egg capsules.
Find this SeaPal in the card gallery
From field guide to game table
Bring this Market Squid home
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- 2 copies
Ready-to-play deck
Open Ocean Deck
Includes 2 cards featuring Market Squid.
Quick dive
Creature passport
- Home
- They range through eastern Pacific coastal water from Mexico toward southeastern Alaska.
- Favorite foods
- They eat small fishes, crustaceans, and marine worms.
- Size check
- Up to about 11 in (28 cm)—roughly ruler length
Tell-your-friends facts
Four wonderfully wild things
- 1
Market squid grow quickly and usually live for only about one year.
- 2
Skin cells called chromatophores create fast-changing patterns and signals.
- 3
Each torpedo-shaped egg capsule can hold roughly 180 to 300 eggs.
- 4
Adults usually die after the great spawning gatherings.
Ocean superpower
Built to be amazing
A muscular mantle blasts water through a funnel for rapid jet propulsion.
Junior scientist tip
What should I look for?
Look for a slender opalescent body, two triangular fins, eight arms, and two tentacles.
Grown-up research links
We used trusted science organizations to check this profile.