Sepioteuthis australis, commonly known as the southern calamari or the southern reef squid, is a species of reef squid that is native to oceans off the coast of Australia and New Zealand. This species is caught commercially by trawling, as bycatch in the prawn fishing industry and by recreational anglers.

Description The maximum length of this squid is about 55 cm (22 in), with a maximum weight of around 5 kg (11 lb). The mantle is robust and tapers bluntly to a point. The eight arms have three rings of suckers with up to thirty hooks, and the two tentacles have long clubs with moderate-sized suckers and further hooks around the suckers. The diamond-shaped fins, which extend for almost the whole length of the mantle are widest in the middle, and are more than half as wide as they are long. The colour of this squid in life is semi-transparent, but if caught and removed from the sea, it will soon change to a uniform orangish-brown or rust colour. The base of the fin has a white or bluish luminescent streak.

Distribution and habitat The southern reef squid is native to the subtropical Indo-Pacific region where it is found between 16°S and 42°S, and between 112°E and 179°E. It is a benthopelagic species with a depth range between 0 and 10 m (0 and 33 ft). It occurs in southern Australia, its range extending from the Ningaloo Coast in Western Australia along the south coast as far as Tasmania and the Great Barrier Reef, as well as around North Island in New Zealand.