Editing Vampire squid (section)

===Systematics===
[[Image:Vampylarge.JPG|thumb|[[Pyritization|Pyritized]] fossil of ''[[Vampyronassa|Vampyronassa rhodanica]]'' from the Lower [[Callovian]] of [[La Voulte-sur-Rhône (lagerstätte)|La Voulte-sur-Rhône]].]]

The Vampyromorphida is the extant sister taxon to all octopuses. Phylogenetic studies of cephalopods using multiple genes and mitochondrial genomes have shown that the Vampyromorphida are the first group of [[Octopodiformes]] to evolutionarily diverge from all others.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Uribe|first1=Juan E.|last2=Zardoya|first2=Rafael|date=May 1, 2017|title=Revisiting the phylogeny of Cephalopoda using complete mitochondrial genomes |url=https://academic.oup.com/mollus/article/83/2/133/2967092|journal=Journal of Molluscan Studies|volume=83|issue=2|pages=133–144|doi=10.1093/mollus/eyw052|via=academic.oup.com|doi-access=free|hdl=10261/156228|hdl-access=free}}</ref><ref name="auto2">{{Cite journal|last1=Lindgren|first1=Annie R.|last2=Pankey|first2=Molly S.|last3=Hochberg|first3=Frederick G.|last4=Oakley|first4=Todd H.|date=July 28, 2012|title=A multi-gene phylogeny of Cephalopoda supports convergent morphological evolution in association with multiple habitat shifts in the marine environment|journal=BMC Evolutionary Biology|volume=12|issue=1|pages=129 |doi=10.1186/1471-2148-12-129|pmc=3733422|pmid=22839506 |doi-access=free |bibcode=2012BMCEE..12..129L }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Strugnell |first1=Jan|last2=Nishiguchi|first2=Michele K.|date=November 1, 2007|title=Molecular phylogeny of coleoid cephalopods (Mollusca: Cephalopoda) inferred from three mitochondrial and six nuclear loci: a comparison of alignment, implied alignment and analysis methods|journal=Journal of Molluscan Studies|volume=73|issue=4 |pages=399–410|doi=10.1093/mollus/eym038|doi-access=free}}</ref> The Vampyromorphida is characterized by derived characters such as the possession of photophores and of two velar filaments which are most probably modified arms. It also shares the inclusion of an internal [[Gladius (cephalopod)|gladius]] with other [[Coleoidea|coleoids]], including squid, and eight webbed arms with [[Cirrina|cirrate]] octopods.

''Vampyroteuthis'' shares its eight cirrate arms with the Cirrata, in which lateral cirri, or filaments, alternate with the suckers. ''Vampyroteuthis'' differs in that suckers are present only on the distal half of the arms while cirri run the entire length. In cirrate octopods suckers and cirri run and alternate on the entire length. Also, a close relationship between ''Vampyroteuthis'' and the Jurassic-Cretaceous [[Loligosepiina]] is indicated by the similarity of their gladii, the internal stiffening structure. ''[[Vampyronassa|Vampyronassa rhodanica]]'' from the middle Jurassic [[La Voulte-sur-Rhône (lagerstätte)|La Voulte-sur-Rhône]] of France is considered as one of a vampyroteuthid that shares some characters with ''Vampyroteuthis''.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Rowe |first1=Alison J. |last2=Kruta |first2=Isabelle |last3=Landman |first3=Neil H. |last4=Villier |first4=Loïc |last5=Fernandez |first5=Vincent |last6=Rouget |first6=Isabelle |date=2022-06-23 |title=Exceptional soft-tissue preservation of Jurassic Vampyronassa rhodanica provides new insights on the evolution and palaeoecology of vampyroteuthids |journal=Scientific Reports |language=en |volume=12 |issue=1 |pages=8292 |doi=10.1038/s41598-022-12269-3 |pmid=35739131 |pmc=9225997 |bibcode=2022NatSR..12.8292R |issn=2045-2322|doi-access=free }}</ref>

The supposed vampyromorphids from the [[Kimmeridgian]]-[[Tithonian]] (156–146 mya) of [[Solnhofen]], ''[[Plesioteuthis prisca]]'', ''[[Leptotheuthis gigas]]'', and ''[[Trachyteuthis hastiformis]]'', cannot be positively assigned to this group; they are large species (from 35&nbsp;cm in ''P. prisca'' to > 1 m in ''L. gigas'') and show features not found in vampyromorphids, being somewhat similar to the true squids, [[Teuthida]].{{sfn|Fischer|Riou|2002}}