Giant Australian cuttlefish do not appear to have returned for the annual mass mating gathering at Point Lowly, northeast of Whyalla in South Australia, where tens of thousands typically aggregate each winter. Normally, more than 100,000 animals are seen along the rocky coastline as they mate and perform striking color and pattern displays.
Both outlets report that the expected seasonal aggregation is not happening this year. The Conversation notes that by late June the cuttlefish should be well into their mating season and aggregating, but they are absent. Phys.org similarly describes this season as unlike any other, emphasizing that the usual return of the animals has not occurred. Neither outlet attributes the absence to a specific cause, instead focusing on the unusual lack of the expected breeding event.
The current accounts therefore largely converge on the same core observation—this year’s mass gathering does not materialize—while providing limited detail on the underlying reasons or scientific explanations.
