Coquettish cuttlefish
The breeding ground of the Australian giant cuttlefish off the South Australian coast has been added to the National Heritage List. Every year between May and August, hundreds of thousands of this species congregate in a stretch of water known as the Cuttlefish Coast Sanctuary Zone – located off the Eyre Peninsula’s Spencer Gulf, to the west of Stony Point (see Where cuttlefish clutter, AG 162). In a stunning display of strobing colours and twirling tentacles, males showcase their best colours – or resort to scuffles with rivals – in a bid to attract females. The Cuttlefish Coast Sanctuary Zone is famed worldwide. Tourists flock to the nearby town of Whyalla each year to watch the migration spectacle and swim alongside the cephalopods. Since the SA government introduced a cuttlefish fishing ban in 2013, numbers in the migration have surged from 13,000 to 240,000. The ban was lifted in 2020 and reintroduced in May 2022.
