Gray, 1849 (including Grimalditeuthidae Pfeffer, 1900)
Mantle conical or sac-like, in larvae tapering into long thin tail, usually broken off in adults at level of posterior end of fin. Fin small, round or oval. Arms of 1st to 3rd pairs with 2 rows of suckers, 4th usually much wider and/or longer than others, with very small suckers in 1 or 2 rows, sometimes only in basal part of arm. Tentacles extremely long, with thin stem, club widened, with 4-6 rows of suckers, with well developed protective membranes, usually with keel. No fixing apparatus. Structure of club in larvae of some species differs widely from that in adults, adult club developed in proximal part of larval club, the latter then degenerating or autotomizing. Buccal membrane with 7 lappets, connectives to 4th arms attached ventrally. Funnel cartilage ear-shaped, bottle-shaped, elongate-triangular, or oval, usually (but not always) with 2 projections: tragus (on ventral side) and antitragus (on posterior side). Mantle cartilage nose-like. Funnel valve absent in some genera. Gladius very thin, rod-like, with long conus, reaching far behind posterior end of fin. In some species larvae and juveniles have another fin, different in shape from primary one and located in the conus of gladius. Photophores located on eyeball, 4th arms, tentacular club and ink sac, but may be absent. Transition from larval to juvenile and subadult stage is gradual and protracted; thus, specimens with larval features may be rather large, in some cases the second fin and tail being even larger than in subadults. Four genera plus some undescribed ones. For most South Alantic species larvae undescribed.
Planctonic stages recorded for:
Chiroteuthis veranyi
Grimalditeuthis bonplandi