European squid
Loligo vulgaris Lamarck, 1798
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The European squid (Loligo vulgaris) is a mollusc in the class Cephalopoda, order Myopsida and family Loliginidae. Its scientific name was given by Lamarck, 1798, and it is placed in the genus Loligo.
Quick facts about the European squid
Other English names for it include Inkfish, Sea arrow, Common squid, Cape hope squid and Lon-finned squid. The IUCN Red List classifies the European squid as Data Deficient (DD) in its global assessment.
- Weight
- Not recorded
- Length
- up to 40 cmsrc for Length
- Lifespan
- Not recorded
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- coastalsrc for Habitat
- Young per litter or clutch
- Not recorded
- Conservation status
- Data Deficient (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Photos of the European squid
Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.
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Where does the European squid live?
Not recorded
What is the European squid?
The European squid or common squid (Loligo vulgaris) is a large squid belonging to the family Loliginidae. It occurs abundantly in coastal waters from the North Sea to at least the west coast of Africa. This species lives from sea level to depths of 500 m (1,600 ft). Its mantle is up to 40 cm (16 in) long. The species is extensively exploited by commercial fisheries.
Loligo reynaudii, the Cape Hope squid, was previously treated as a subspecies of L. vulgaris.
From the Wikipedia article “European squid” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=European_squid&oldid=1369871122), 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 European squid endangered?
The European squid is listed as Data Deficient on the IUCN Red List: it has too little data for its risk to be assessed.
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Data Deficient species. What the categories mean.
How is the European squid classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumMollusca
- classCephalopoda
- orderMyopsida
- familyLoliginidae
- genusLoligo
- SpeciesLoligo vulgaris Lamarck, 1798
Synonyms Loligo affinis, Loligo berthelotii, Loligo breviceps, Loligo mediterranea, Loligo microcephala, Loligo neglecta, Loligo pulchra, Loligo rangii, Sepia loligo
Other names and names in other languages (69)
- Cape Hope squidEnglish
- Common squidEnglish
- InkfishEnglish
- Kalmar common squidEnglish
- Lon-finned squidEnglish
- Sea arrowEnglish
- xibiónAsturian
- StioganBreton
- calamarCatalan
- Calamar comúCatalan
- krakaticeCzech
- Oliheň obecnáCzech
- Europæisk loligoDanish
- KalmarGerman
- gemeiner KalmarGerman
- gewöhnlicher KalmarGerman
- Roter GemeinerGerman
- ΚαλαμάριGreek
- calamarSpanish
- Calamar ComúnSpanish
- Calamar EuropeoSpanish
- txipiroiakBasque
- Txipiroi arruntBasque
- kalmariFinnish
- calmarFrench
- calmar communFrench
- encornetFrench
- encornet grandes oreillesFrench
- scuidScottish Gaelic
- LuraGalician
- lura txibiaGalician
- לוליגו שקוףHebrew
- דיונון-רחף סנפירתןHebrew
- Europska lignjaCroatian
- Közönséges kalmárHungarian
- smokkfiskurIcelandic
- calamaroItalian
- Calamaro comuneItalian
- Calamaro europeoItalian
- totarielloItalian
- ヨーロッパヤリイカJapanese
- Paprastasis kalmarasLithuanian
- sørkalmarNorwegian Bokmål
- pijlinktvisDutch
- gewone pijlinktvisDutch
- kałamarnicePolish
- kalmar pospolityPolish
- lula-comumPortuguese
- LulaPortuguese
- lula-vulgarPortuguese
- calmarRomanian
- kalmarRussian
- Обыкновенный кальмарRussian
- Обыкновенный лолигоRussian
- Обыкновенный длинноперый кальмарRussian
- severniy kalmarRussian
- srèdizemnomorskiy kalmarRussian
- kalmárySlovak
- lignjiSlovenian
- navadni ligenjSlovenian
- lignjaAlbanian
- kallamariAlbanian
- kalmariAlbanian
- ulignjaAlbanian
- sydkalmarSwedish
- vanlig kalmarSwedish
- kalamarTurkish
- Adi KalamarTurkish
- 欧洲乌贼Chinese
Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistITISTAXREFWikidataIUCN Red List
Relatives of the European squid
Other species in the same genus Loligo.
CompareEuropean squid vs Common squidEuropean squid vs CalamariEuropean squid vs Loligo vietnamensis
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 European squid?
The European squid is a mollusc in the class Cephalopoda and the family Loliginidae.
What is the scientific name of the European squid?
The scientific name of the European squid is Loligo vulgaris, in the genus Loligo.
Who named Loligo vulgaris?
Loligo vulgaris was named by Lamarck, 1798.
Is the European squid endangered?
The European squid is listed as Data Deficient (DD) on the IUCN Red List in its global assessment.
What other names does the European squid have?
Other English names for the European squid are Inkfish, Sea arrow, Common squid, Cape hope squid and Lon-finned squid.
Which order does the European squid belong to?
The European squid belongs to the order Myopsida, within the phylum Mollusca.
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). European squid (Loligo vulgaris). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/european-squid
“European squid (Loligo vulgaris).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/european-squid.
@misc{european_squid_2026,
title = {European squid (Loligo vulgaris)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/european-squid},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}