Interactions with other organisms
Sepia
apama is generally an animal that travels by itself and feeds on
fish, crabs like the
Decorator Crab, and other crustaceans. They generally are solitary
unless breeding. The other animals in the ecosystem are not
bothered by the cuttlefish, and they live fairly commensalistically.
The cuttlefish spends 95% of its day resting, a ‘quiescent’
lifestyle (Aitken, 2005).
Source: Thierry Rakotoarivelo
The Sepia apama have a cuttlebone, a hard interior shell, which is used partially as protection and partially as buoyency control. Bottlenose dolphins, the cuttlefish’s most common predator, have developed techniques in order to prepare them for consumption. The bottlenose dolphins will kill the cuttlefish, remove the hard cuttlebone, and expell the ink before consuming their prey (Catch cuttlefish, 2013) Other predators of the Australian Giant Cuttlefish include fur seals, albatross, and sharks. For some reason, the cuttlefish's camouflage does not seem to be effective in terms of deterring such predators. Humans obviously are able to see beyond the camouflage and are able to hunt the cuttlefish. Generally, cuttlefish are used for sushi, though their cuttlebones are used as calcium supplements for animals such as birds and reptiles.
Here are some more interesting facts about the Sepia apama!