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Flamboyant CuttlefishMetasepia pfefferi

Every figure, record and mechanism on the Flamboyant Cuttlefish profile was written from a source, and this is the working table behind it: 61 claims checked word for word against these sources. The left column is what the page says. The right column is the source's own words, copied, not paraphrased; a ... marks a cut and[brackets] an insertion. Open any source and check it yourself.

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Source
01

Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan

Metasepia pfefferi. Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.

The page saysflashes warning colors to advertise its venom
The source saysThese bright colors are used to warn other creatures of its venomous nature
The page saysA Small Cuttlefish That Walks
The source saysMetasepia pfefferi is a small cephalopodNote: heading; the walking is claimed in the body from investigating-2016
The page saysIt grows up to 60 mm (2.4 in) long.
The source saysRange length 60 (high) mm 2.36 (high) inNote: ADW's field is a length, not labelled mantle length, so the page no longer calls it the mantle; 2.36 in rounds to 2.4 in
The page saysThree pairs of flat flaps, called papillae, cover its eyes.
The source saysThe dorsal mantle has three pairs of large, flat, flap-like papillae, which cover its eyes
The page saysIts cuttlebone, which sits inside its body and controls how well it floats, runs about two-thirds to three-quarters the length of the mantle.
The source saysThe cuttlebone, the defining feature of a cuttlefish, is approximately two thirds to three quarters the length of the mantle ... The internal cuttlebone is used to regulate buoyancy
The page saysThat is small for its body, so it cannot swim for long.
The source saysBecause the cuttlebone is small relative to the mantle, cuttlefish in general cannot swim very long and generally "walk" along the bottomNote: the "so" is ADW's own "Because"; ADW states the cause for cuttlefish in general, on this species' page, and the sentence applies it to this species, which the general statement includes; the quote's "generally" qualifies the walking and is carried as "usually" in the next sentence
The page saysA Flash of Warning Colors
The source saysWhen Metasepia pfefferi is threatened, it quickly change its colors through the manipulation of its chromatophores ... These bright colors are used to warn other creatures of its venomous nature
The page saysWhen it feels threatened, the flamboyant cuttlefish quickly changes color.
The source saysWhen Metasepia pfefferi is threatened, it quickly change its colors through the manipulation of its chromatophores
The page saysIt makes black, white and yellow patches on its dark brown skin and turns its arm tips bright red.
The source saysIt creates black, white and yellow patches on its dark brown skin and turns the tips of its arms bright red
The page saysThese bright colors warn other animals that it is venomous.
The source saysThese bright colors are used to warn other creatures of its venomous nature
The page saysIt keeps the pattern, waving its protective arm membranes, until it no longer feels threatened.
The source saysIt will keep this color pattern while waving its protective arm membranes, until it no longer feels threatened
The page saysCuttlefish in general fall prey to seals, dolphins and fish
The source saysIn general, cuttlefish are preyed upon by seals, dolphins and fish
The page saysthey can release ink to confuse a predator and escape
The source saysCuttlefish in general will secrete ink to disorient a predator and escape
The page saysA male passes packets of sperm to the female with a specialized arm.
The source saysMales have a specialized, hectocotyl arm that is used for holding and transferring spermatophores (packets of sperm) into the females buccal areas during mating
The page saysShe lays her eggs one by one in hard-to-reach cracks and crevices, hidden from predators.
The source saysthe female lays her eggs one by one in hard to reach cracks and crevices to hide and provide protection against predators
The page saysIts lifespan is estimated at 18 to 24 months, based on what is known about other species in the same family
The source saysThe lifespan of Metasepia pfefferi is estimated to be between 18 and 24 months based on knowledge of other species in the same familyNote: ADW 2011 is the only lifespan source; the sentence keeps "estimated" and its basis
The page saysmany females die after spawning
The source saysmany females do not survive post-spawningNote: "die after spawning" paraphrases "do not survive post-spawning"
The page saysCuttlefish use an internal cuttlebone to control how well they float.
The source saysThe internal cuttlebone is used to regulate buoyancy by controlling the gas and liquid that it lets into the chambers of the cuttlebone
The page saysThis one's cuttlebone is small compared with its body, so it cannot swim for long, and it usually "walks" along the seabed instead.
The source saysBecause the cuttlebone is small relative to the mantle, cuttlefish in general cannot swim very long and generally "walk" along the bottomNote: the "so" is ADW's own "Because"; "usually" is its "generally"; applied to this species from ADW's statement about cuttlefish in general
The page saysIts skin holds many chromatophores
The source saysThe skin contains many chromatophores, which are pigment cells that can be manipulated to change colors
The page saysYes, it is venomous.
The source saysMetasepia pfefferi is also venomousNote: also what the venomous tag rests on (added in #277), with ADW's 'one of only three known venomous species of cephalopods' and its Negative Impacts field 'injures humans bites or stings'. ADW's glossary defines venomous as an organ capable of injecting a poisonous substance into a wound; the site already tags the blue-ringed octopus's beak bite venomous, so the tag's 'fangs, stingers, spurs, or harpoons' reads as examples
The page saysWhen it feels threatened, it makes black, white and yellow patches on its dark brown skin and turns its arm tips bright red.
The source saysWhen Metasepia pfefferi is threatened, it quickly change its colors through the manipulation of its chromatophores. It creates black, white and yellow patches on its dark brown skin and turns the tips of its arms bright red
The page saysThese bright colors warn other animals about its venom.
The source saysThese bright colors are used to warn other creatures of its venomous nature
The page saysIt keeps them up until it no longer feels threatened.
The source saysIt will keep this color pattern while waving its protective arm membranes, until it no longer feels threatened
The page saysAnimal Diversity Web lists it as an animal that can injure people.
The source saysNegative Impacts injures humans bites or stingsNote: added in the #277 settle so the page states what backs stats.dangerLevel Medium ('Can injure, but rarely seriously'). The wave's pack missed this ADW field, so Low was proposed. ADW's 'it may possibly be able to quickly kill an adult human' is speculation with no case behind it, and a tier goes to Deadly only when a source says people died

Source
02

Thomas & MacDonald 2016

Thomas & MacDonald (2016). Investigating body patterning in aquarium-raised flamboyant cuttlefish (Metasepia pfefferi). PeerJ.

The page saysColors That Travel Across Its Skin
The source saysin which the colors on the skin appeared to travel on the animalNote: heading; replaces "A Mantle That Never Stops Rippling": the study found traveling components in 8 of 11 patterns, used frequently, which "never stops" overstated
The page saysBottom-walking cephalopod
The source saysM. pfefferi moves throughout its environment in a unique fashion: by "walking" or "ambling" along the bottom
The page sayssends color waves across its skin
The source saysi.e., traveling waves or blinking spots) in which the colors on the skin appeared to travel on the animal
The page saysSandy or muddy seafloor in shallow tropical waters under 85 meters deep, around Australia, Papua New Guinea and Indonesia
The source saysIn the wild, M. pfefferi are found in the tropical, shallow (<85 m) waters around Australia, Papua New Guinea and Indonesia. These benthic cephalopods have been observed hunting fish and crustaceans on sandy or muddy substratesNote: the 2016 paper is newer than ADW's 2011 account (3 to 86 m, "southern edge of New Guinea"), and adds Indonesia
The page saysFish and crustaceans hunted on sandy or muddy seafloor
The source saysThese benthic cephalopods have been observed hunting fish and crustaceans on sandy or muddy substrates
The page saysIn captivity it often sends colors traveling across its mantle, in many kinds of situations. Other cuttlefish are generally seen doing this while hunting or showing aggression.
The source saysIn other species, these components are generally seen during hunting or aggression, but this population of M. pfefferi uses them frequently during a variety of contexts in their home aquariumNote: "In captivity" carries the study's home-aquarium scope
The page saysA 2016 study watched five captive-bred adult flamboyant cuttlefish
The source saysThis study aimed to identify the dorsally-visible components of the body patterns used by 5 sexually-mature, freely-behaving, F5 generation M. pfefferi in their home aquarium at The Seas in Epcot at Walt Disney World ResortsNote: 2016 is the reference's own publication year; "adult" is "sexually-mature", "captive-bred" is "F5 generation" in a home aquarium
The page saysIt catalogued dozens of color, texture, posture and movement components, which combined into 11 distinct body patterns.
The source saysWe found that this population of M. pfefferi use a combination of 7 textural, 14 postural, 7 locomotor and between 42 and 75 chromatic components in their home aquarium. Using maximum likelihood analysis and AutoClass@IJM software, we found that these components combine to generate 11 distinct body patterns
The page saysUnusually for cuttlefish, 8 of those 11 patterns included colors that seemed to travel across the mantle
The source saysUnusually for cuttlefish, 8 of the 11 identified patterns contained at least one "traveling" component (i.e., traveling waves or blinking spots) in which the colors on the skin appeared to travel on the animal
The page saysOther cuttlefish species are generally seen doing this while hunting or showing aggression.
The source saysIn other species, these components are generally seen during hunting or aggression
The page saysThese aquarium animals did it often, in many kinds of situations.
The source saysthis population of M. pfefferi uses them frequently during a variety of contexts in their home aquarium
The page saysThe authors could not say whether wild ones do the same, because so little had been published about their behavior in the wild.
The source saysWith few published data on the behavior of M. pfefferi in their natural environment, we cannot compare the behavior of the tank-raised individuals in this study to animals in the wildNote: "because so little had been published" paraphrases the source's own causal "With few published data ... we cannot compare"; past tense keeps it a 2016 statement, not a claim about research today
The page saysFour zones of traveling color
The source saysWe also observed 4 distinct regions of "travel" in traveling waves on the mantle
The page saysWaves, two or three at a time, ran from the front and the back of the mantle to a white square at its center.
The source saysa pair of wave sets (each containing 2–3 waves) began at the most anterior point of the mantle and traveled posteriorly to the White square in the center of the mantle. A second pair of wave sets began at the most posterior point of the mantle and traveled anteriorly to the White square
The page saysOthers ran from that square out to the sides, toward the fins.
The source saysA third and fourth set began on the right and left sides of the White square and travel laterally towards the finline
The page saysThe study's captive-bred females weighed about 20 grams and the males about 10 grams, at 3 to 4 months old.
The source saysThis population contained three females (approximate mass: 20 g) and two males (approximate mass: 10 g) 3–4 months of ageNote: the only mass source: young, tank-raised F5 animals at Epcot; the sentence keeps that scope and gives no wild weight. battleStats.weightKg: 0.02 rests on this (#277): the same study calls the five 'sexually-mature', so 20 g is an adult mass, if a captive one. Both sexes are Micro (under 0.1 kg), where the name gave it Medium. Not in a curated matchup
The page saysalong the seafloor on two of its eight arms
The source saysThe walking arms (Arms IV) are set very wide and the other 6 arms extend further forward than Arms IV
The page saysInstead it usually walks, or "ambles,"
The source saysM. pfefferi moves throughout its environment in a unique fashion: by "walking" or "ambling" along the bottomNote: "usually" carries ADW's "generally 'walk' along the bottom"; the study also logged swimming, so the walking is not stated as the only way it moves
The page saysFlaps of skin and muscle at the back of its underside, called glutapods, sometimes join in, letting it walk almost like a four-legged animal.
The source saysExtensions of the musculature and skin on the posterior, ventral end of the mantle and can be used to help aid in "walking" ... The animal uses the "glutapods" (see above) simultaneously with the walking arms to walk in a tetrapod-like manner
The page saysIn the wild it lives in shallow tropical waters, less than 85 meters deep, around Australia, Papua New Guinea and Indonesia.
The source saysIn the wild, M. pfefferi are found in the tropical, shallow (<85 m) waters around Australia, Papua New Guinea and Indonesia
The page saysThere it hunts fish and crustaceans on sandy or muddy seafloor.
The source saysThese benthic cephalopods have been observed hunting fish and crustaceans on sandy or muddy substratesNote: also what the predator tag rests on (#277), with ADW's 'Metasepia pfefferi is a predatory animal'. It replaces apex-predator ('no natural predators as adults'), which ADW's 'In general, cuttlefish are preyed upon by seals, dolphins and fish' does not support
The page saysIt was discovered in 1885
The source saysM. pfefferi was initially discovered in 1885 (Hoyle, 1885)
The page saysthe first sightings of living ones were not reported until 1988
The source saysthe first observations of living individuals were not reported until 1988 (Roper & Hochberg, 1988)
The page saysIt walks on two of its eight arms, sometimes helped by flaps of skin and muscle at the back of its underside, called glutapods.
The source saysExtensions of the musculature and skin on the posterior, ventral end of the mantle and can be used to help aid in "walking" ... The walking arms (Arms IV) are set very wide and the other 6 arms extend further forward than Arms IV
The page saysUsed together, they let it walk almost like a four-legged animal.
The source saysThe animal uses the "glutapods" (see above) simultaneously with the walking arms to walk in a tetrapod-like manner
The page sayspockets of pigment ringed by muscles that nerves control
The source saysThis organ in the skin consists of a compartment of pigment granules surrounded by neurally-controlled, radial muscle fibers
The page saysWhen those muscles expand, the pigment is exposed.
The source saysThe expansion of these muscle fibers leads to the exposure of the pigment granules
The page saysWhen the chromatophores pull back, layers of reflective cells show through, adding iridescent blues and greens and bright whites.
The source saysWhen the chromatophores are retracted, layers of reflective iridophores and leucophores are exposed. These cells are responsible for the iridescent blues and greens (iridophores) and the high contrast whites (leucophores)
The page says2016 study of five captive-bred adults found they combined dozens of color components into 11 distinct body patterns.
The source says5 sexually-mature, freely-behaving, F5 generation M. pfefferi in their home aquarium ... use a combination of 7 textural, 14 postural, 7 locomotor and between 42 and 75 chromatic components in their home aquarium. Using maximum likelihood analysis and AutoClass@IJM software, we found that these components combine to generate 11 distinct body patternsNote: 2016 is the reference's own publication year
The page saysIn 8 of them, colors seemed to travel across the mantle.
The source says8 of the 11 identified patterns contained at least one "traveling" component (i.e., traveling waves or blinking spots) in which the colors on the skin appeared to travel on the animal
The page saysOther cuttlefish are generally seen doing this while hunting or showing aggression, but these aquarium animals did it often, in many kinds of situations.
The source saysIn other species, these components are generally seen during hunting or aggression, but this population of M. pfefferi uses them frequently during a variety of contexts in their home aquarium
The page sayssends sets of two or three color waves in from the front and the back of its mantle to meet at a white square in the middle
The source saysa pair of wave sets (each containing 2–3 waves) began at the most anterior point of the mantle and traveled posteriorly to the White square in the center of the mantle. A second pair of wave sets began at the most posterior point of the mantle and traveled anteriorly to the White squareNote: vibe.reason, re-paired in task #939 (Pat Thomas & Kwashibu Area Band)

Source
03

Lupše et al. 2023

Lupše et al. (2023). Cuttlefishes (Cephalopoda, Sepiidae): the bare bones - an hypothesis of relationships. Marine Biology.

The page saysA 2023 DNA study of cuttlefish brought back several genus names, including Ascarosepion, and linked Metasepia to it.
The source saysBased on a comprehensive analysis of molecular sequence data, the Sepiidae genera Acanthosepion Rochebrune, 1884; Ascarosepion Rochebrune, 1884 ... are here re-instated and formally recognised as valid ... Metasepia Hoyle, 1885 is placed in alternative combination with AscarosepionNote: 2023 is the reference's own publication year; "linked" says less than "placed in alternative combination", and the page no longer names an Ascarosepion pfefferi the abstract does not
The page saysA 2023 study of cuttlefish DNA brought back several genus names as valid, including Ascarosepion.
The source saysBased on a comprehensive analysis of molecular sequence data, the Sepiidae genera Acanthosepion Rochebrune, 1884; Ascarosepion Rochebrune, 1884 ... are here re-instated and formally recognised as validNote: 2023 is the reference's own publication year
The page saysIt also placed Metasepia "in alternative combination" with Ascarosepion.
The source saysMetasepia Hoyle, 1885 is placed in alternative combination with Ascarosepion

Source
04

Barratt & Allcock 2012

Barratt & Allcock (2012). Metasepia pfefferi. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2012: e.T162681A943607.

The page saysThe IUCN Red List last assessed it in 2009 and lists it as Data Deficient
The source saysMetasepia pfefferi has most recently been assessed for The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species in 2009. Metasepia pfefferi is listed as Data Deficient.Note: iucnredlist.org refuses scripts and GBIF holds no category for this taxon, so this quote is a hand read of the assessment page in Chrome (2026-09-14), not verify:quotes-checked text

How the table was made: a writer drafted the profile from these sources and logged each claim with its quote, a reviewer with nothing but this table checked every sentence said no more than its quote, and a script confirmed each quote appears word for word in the source. The method is in the site'sAbout page.