Love is in the water with our three-hearted Giant Cuttlefish

“Life below Water”

The Giant Cuttlefish is the largest species of cuttlefish in the world and we are lucky enough to have them right here on our doorstep at Cabbage Tree Bay Aquatic Reserve, Manly.

This amazing creature has three hearts and bluish-green blood. As they hunt or when looking for a mates, they can change their colour and texture of their skin in an instant - pretty impressive given they are actually completely colour blind! 

Their eyes pick up polarised light and they can camouflage to their surroundings even in complete darkness. 

Males sometimes puff themselves up in order to make them seem more attractive or more aggressive and can release ink from a sac to confuse or disorientate potential predators. 

In the mating stakes, Giant Cuttlefish are prolific lovers. Females have been known to mate up to 17 times a day with a number of different males.

Males use modified arms to transfer a sperm packet to the female and then the female will actually use this to fertilise the eggs one-by-one and attach them to rocky surfaces with a gelatinous covering.

After these exhaustive mating events, they typically die, living for only two to three years. 

Next time you are walking on one of our beaches, take a look to see if you can spot a cuttlefish bone washed up on the shore – and impress your walking partner with this interesting story of “Life below Water”.

View our video