Morphology and molecular identification on octopus (Genus Octopus Cuvier, 1798) caught in Palabuhanratu, Sukabumi, West Java

Abstract

Octopus (genus Octopus) is a member of family Octopodidae with two valid species in Indonesia. From fishery point of view octopus utilization has been started to increase, although, the effort to catch it is still limited. This research was aimed to identify octopus (genus Octopus) collected from Palabuhanratu Bay morphologically, with validation by means of molecular technique. This research was done from January to June 2017. Thirty-seven individuals were obtained, and were analyzed morphologically and molecularly. Morphological identification showed that samples have a characteristic similarity to Octopus cyanea. Arm Suckers Count (ASC) was the most diverse morphometrical character. Gene characteristics of the samples have 99% similarity to Octopus cyanea gene that stored in NCBI site's database. Molecular analysis obtained similarity on genetic characteristics for all samples. Based on morphology characteristic and molecular validation, all samples were determined as Octopus cyanea.