Sepia tuberculata is a species of cuttlefish native to South African waters from Melkbosstrand (an area near Cape Town) (33°43′S 18°26′E / 33.717°S 18.433°E / -33.717; 18.433) to Knysna (In the South) (34°03′S 23°03′E / 34.050°S 23.050°E / -34.050; 23.050). It belongs to the genus Sepia. It lives in very shallow water to a depth of 3 m. It is endemic.
The type specimen was collected off the coast of South Africa and is deposited at the Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle in Paris.
Sepia tuberculata grows to a mantle length of 82 mm. The upper surface of the body is rough with variably extending bumps. The lower body surface has two glandular patches. Like all cuttlefish, this species has ten arms, of which two are elongated tentacles used for catching prey. It has narrow fins which extend the length of the body.
Sepia tuberculata is capable of changing colour rapidly. It feeds on shrimps. It uses its glandular patches to cling to rocks.
It is the prey of the Cape Clawless Otter – an opportunistic mammal that is adept at capturing available prey. It is often caught in the Tsitsikama Coastal National Park in South Africa. It is part of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species however it is considered “data deficient” since there is very little published information on the species and thus cannot be put into a Red List Category. A huge threat to Sepia tuberculata, as well as many other Cephalopods, is ocean acidification due to anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions. Changes in the 33chemistry of seawater has been found to increase calcification rates in a relative of S. tuberculata, S. officinalis. Increased calcification in the cuttlebone has a negative impact in that it affects the cuttlebone’s function as a lightweight, buoyancy structure in cuttlefish.
Cuttlefish have made a lot of the earnings for several fisheries in the English Channel however it is unknown if S. tuberculata is of interest to fisheries in South Africa.
