True Colors: Female Squid Have Two Ways to Switch Color, According to UCSB Study
The female common market squid – AKA Doryteuthis opalescens – may not be so common after all. Researchers led by MCDB professor Daniel Morse have discovered that this glamorous cephalopod possesses a pair of stripes that can sparkle with rainbow iridescence. These flank a single stripe, which can go from complete transparency to bright white. This marks the first time that switchable white cells based on reflectins – the proteins responsible for reflecting light as color – have been observed. The findings are published in the Journal of Experimental Biology.