Venom Wiki
Cartoon of Common cuttlefish
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Common cuttlefish

Sepia officinalis
Cone snails & octopuses๐Ÿฆท Bites
Danger to people: MildLike a bee sting or less. Basically harmless to people.

Common cuttlefish belongs to the group: Cone snails & octopuses. It lives in: The oceans.2

Lives in
The oceans2
Length
30 cm (1 ft)2
typical adult size
Top speed
about 15 km/h (9.3 mph)
Swimming, rough guess

Venom power

Bites

Venom comes out through its fangs or teeth when it bites.

How dangerous is it to people?

Danger to people: MildLike a bee sting or less. Basically harmless to people.

๐Ÿš‘ If it bites or stings

  • Pressure immobilisation: wrap a firm elastic bandage over the bite and then up the whole limb, splint it, and keep the person completely still until help arrives.
  • A blue-ringed octopus or cone snail can stop a person breathing while they are still awake: call for help and be ready to give rescue breaths until the ambulance takes over.

Always call your emergency number first (112, 000, 911). This is general first aid guidance, not medical advice. First aid basics

โ›‘๏ธ Stay safe

  • Never touch, catch or tease a wild animal, even a small one, and even if it looks asleep or dead.
  • Give it space. If you meet one, stay calm, step back slowly and let it go its own way.
  • If one bites or stings you: stay calm, keep still, call your emergency number (112, 000, 911) or get to a hospital fast. Remember what it looked like, a photo helps.

It is not out to get you. It uses its venom to catch food or to protect itself, and it would much rather hide. More about staying safe

How big is it?

How long is it?

Common cuttlefish about 30 cm long (1 ft)๐Ÿ“ŽA paper clip about 3 cm (1.2 in)๐ŸŒA banana about 18 cm (7.1 in)A house cat about 50 cm (1.6 ft)
as long as 9 toy building bricks in a rowcould swim the length of a big swimming pool (50 m) in 12 seconds

How big is Common cuttlefish compared to YOU?

Just maths in your browser. Nothing is saved or sent anywhere.

How fast is it?

For venom experts

Scientific name
Sepia officinalis
Group
Cone snails & octopuses
Family
Sepiidae1
Order
Sepiida
Continents
The oceans
Danger to people
1 / 5: Mild2

Where the facts come from

  1. Sepia officinalis (iNaturalist): names and classification.
  2. Venom Wiki: the danger level, the typical size and the speed guess are our own. See how we work them out: How we rate danger.

Every fact on this page has a number that points to its source. If we got something wrong, sorry, we are animal fans, not a science journal. Tell us at hello@venomwiki.app and we will fix it.

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More from the same group: Cone snails & octopuses

Also lives in: The oceans

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