Common cuttlefish
Sepia officinalis Linnaeus, 1758
LCLeast Concernoctopus and squid
The common cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis) is a mollusc in the class Cephalopoda, order Sepiida and family Sepiidae. It was named by Linnaeus, 1758, and is also called Cuttlefish or European common cuttlefish.
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Quick facts about the common cuttlefish
The IUCN Red List assesses the common cuttlefish globally as Least Concern (LC), which is not an IUCN threatened category.
- Weight
- up to 4 kgsrc for Weight
- Length
- up to 49 cmsrc for Length
- Lifespan
- Not recorded
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- Not recorded
- Young per litter or clutch
- Not recorded
- Migration
- Migratorysrc for Migration
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Photos of the common cuttlefish
Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.
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Where does the common cuttlefish live?
Not recorded
What is the common cuttlefish?
The common cuttlefish or European common cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis) is one of the largest and best-known cuttlefish species. They are a migratory species that spend the summer and spring inshore for spawning and then move to depths of 100–200 metres (330–660 ft) during autumn and winter. They grow to 49 centimetres (19 in) in mantle length and 4 kilograms (8.8 lb) in weight. Animals from subtropical seas are smaller and rarely exceed 30 centimetres (12 in) in mantle length.
The common cuttlefish is native to at least the Mediterranean Sea, North Sea, and Baltic Sea, although subspecies have been proposed as far south as South Africa. It lives on sand and mud seabeds and it can tolerate brackish water conditions.
From the Wikipedia article “Common cuttlefish” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Common_cuttlefish&oldid=1384646640), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the common cuttlefish endangered?
The common cuttlefish is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species.
How is the common cuttlefish classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumMollusca
- classCephalopoda
- orderSepiida
- familySepiidae
- genusSepia
- SpeciesSepia officinalis Linnaeus, 1758
Synonyms Sepia filliouxi, Sepia fischeri, Sepia mediterranea, Sepia officinalis mediterranea, Sepia officinalis officinalis, Sepia rugosa, Sepia veranyi, Sepia vicellius, Sepia zebrina
Other names and names in other languages (103)
- CuttlefishEnglish
- European common cuttlefishEnglish
- SeibaArabic
- SabbidijeArabic
- SeppioArabic
- ShoubiaArabic
- SibiaArabic
- SobbeitArabic
- SoubiaArabic
- XibiaAsturian
- SepijaBulgarian
- SèpiaCatalan
- sípia comunaCatalan
- seppiaCorsican
- sepie obecnáCzech
- sépie obecnáCzech
- sepiablæksprutteDanish
- SepiaGerman
- Gemeine SepiaGerman
- Gemeine SepieGerman
- Gemeine TintenschneckeGerman
- Gemeiner TintenfischGerman
- Gemeiner TintenfishGerman
- gewöhnliche TintenfischGerman
- Gewöhnlicher TintenfischGerman
- SepieGerman
- SepietintenfischGerman
- ΣουπιάGreek
- Κοινή ΣουπιάGreek
- CorsicaGreek
- SoupiaGreek
- cocaSpanish
- AludaSpanish
- ChocoSpanish
- JibiaSpanish
- JibiónSpanish
- LudaSpanish
- RellenaSpanish
- Rellena / RellenoSpanish
- RellenoSpanish
- Sepia comúnSpanish
- sipiaSpanish
- SipionetSpanish
- txibiaBasque
- txautxaBasque
- MustekalaFinnish
- secheFrench
- CasseronFrench
- ChakodFrench
- ChibiaFrench
- ChubeiFrench
- margadeFrench
- SeicheFrench
- Seiche communeFrench
- SupiaFrench
- XibaGalician
- Dyonon RefuiHebrew
- דיונון רוקחיםHebrew
- közönséges tintahalHungarian
- sepaItalian
- ScarpettaItalian
- ScarpitelleItalian
- ScarpittaItalian
- SecceItalian
- SeccetellaItalian
- Seccetella (Juveniles)Italian
- sepiaItalian
- Sepia imperialeItalian
- Sepp(i)aItalian
- SeppaItalian
- Seppia comuneItalian
- sicciaItalian
- ko-ikaJapanese
- ヨーロッパコウイカJapanese
- ma-ikaJapanese
- Mongo-ikaJapanese
- Yoroppa kouikaJapanese
- Paprastoji sepijaLithuanian
- oum semramey
- SiccaMaltese
- sepiablekksprutNorwegian Bokmål
- ZeekatDutch
- Gewone inktvisDutch
- gewone zeekatDutch
- mątwa pospolitaPolish
- mątwa zwyczajnaPolish
- sibaPortuguese
- checoPortuguese
- ChocoPortuguese
- Choco-europeuPortuguese
- choco-vulgarPortuguese
- sepiaRussian
- Лекарственная каракатицаRussian
- Kora katitzaRussian
- obiknovennaya karakatizaRussian
- sépia lekárskaSlovak
- navadna sipaSlovenian
- sipaAlbanian
- sepjaAlbanian
- supjaAlbanian
- sidensepiaSwedish
- SübyeTurkish
- Каракатиця звичайнаUkrainian
Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistITISTAXREFWikidataIUCN Red List
Relatives of the common cuttlefish
Other species in the same genus Sepia.
Common ink-fish
Sepia vermiculata
African cuttlefish
Sepia bertheloti
Tuberculate cuttlefish
Sepia tuberculata
Giant African cuttlefish
Sepia hierredda
Shortclub cuttlefish
Sepia brevimana
Little cuttlefish
Sepia mira
CompareCommon cuttlefish vs Common ink-fishCommon cuttlefish vs African cuttlefishCommon cuttlefish vs Tuberculate cuttlefishCommon cuttlefish vs Giant African cuttlefish
Common questions
Each answer is written from the sourced facts on this page, and only where they hold the answer.
What kind of animal is the common cuttlefish?
The common cuttlefish is a mollusc in the class Cephalopoda and family Sepiidae. It is listed under the animal subgroup Octopuses.
What is the scientific name of the common cuttlefish?
Its scientific name is Sepia officinalis, in the genus Sepia.
Who named the common cuttlefish and when?
It was named by Linnaeus, 1758.
Is the common cuttlefish endangered?
No. The IUCN Red List assesses it globally as Least Concern (LC), which is not an IUCN threatened category.
What other names does the common cuttlefish have?
It is also called Cuttlefish and European common cuttlefish.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Common cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/common-cuttlefish
“Common cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/common-cuttlefish.
@misc{common_cuttlefish_2026,
title = {Common cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/common-cuttlefish},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}