cuttlefish an edible cephalopod (the group of molluscs which also includes squid and octopus). The species familiar in the Mediterranean and E. Atlantic is Sepia officinalis, which has a maximum body length of about 25 cm (10") and is usually dark in colour with markings as shown in the drawing. Like other cephalopods, it has ink sacs which secrete a dark ink, intended for ejection when a predator threatens it. That of the cuttlefish was formerly used to produce the colour sepia. Both cuttlefish and squid may be called inkfish.
