Taxonomic status of squids of the genus Berryteuthis Naef, 1921 (Gonatidae, Oegopsida) inhabiting the Sea of Japan

Two subspecies of the schoolmaster gonate squid Berryteuthis magister (Berry, 1913) have been described to date: B. magister nipponensis Okutani et Kubodera, 1987 from the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Japan and Sea of Japan, and B. magister shevtsovi Katugin, 2000 from the Sea of Japan. The gonatid species Gonatus septemdentatus Sasaki, 1915, which was later recognized as a junior synonym ofB. magister, was also described from the Sea of Japan. Comparisons among these three taxa and with the nominative subspecies using morphological and ecological features suggest that individuals of the genus Berryteuthis inhabiting the Sea of Japan belong to the species B. septemdentatus (Sasaki, 1915), which should be considered the valid name for this taxon.