Video: Split body patterns help cuttlefish lure females

Who says males can’t multitask? Cuttlefish can dupe rival males into thinking they’re girls, even while actively courting a female.

Cuttlefish are famed for their ability to change colour for communication purposes. Male mourning cuttlefish (Sepia plangon) normally display pulsating stripes, whereas females are mottled.

But the males aren’t averse to a spot of cross-dressing, says Culum Brown of Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia.

Brown’s team observed wild cuttlefish in Sydney harbour for six years. Whenever a male was courting a female, and there was a rival male nearby, the courting male started lying. He displayed male colours on the side facing the female, but female colours on the other side to dupe the rival and prevent him from interfering.


Males did not do this when there were two rivals present, presumably because it would be too difficult to deceive both of them. That suggests the animals were trying to avoid being caught lying – something that requires a high level of social intelligence.

It’s not the first time cuttlefish have been seen using deceptive displays. Male giant cuttlefish pretend to be female to sneak into other males’ harems.

Journal reference: Biology Letters, DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2012.0435