The pelagic cephalopods Japetella diaphana and Vampyroteuthis infernalis are charismatic and widely distributed members of deep pelagic ecosystems. Their habitat temperatures, metabolic rates, feeding and reproductive strategies all together suggest that the pace of life in these species is reduced when compared to neritic octopod species, but information on longevity, growth rates and age estimations are absent to date. To estimate the pace of life in pelagic octopods, this study investigated size at maturity, reproductive strategy, and the number of growth-increments in the upper beak lateral walls (LWS) of J. diaphana (an octopod) and V. infernalis (a vampyromorph). Daily deposition of growth increments in hard body structures (e.g., beaks and stylets) has been validated experimentally in some temperate and tropical octopods, but remains unquantified and not yet validated for most deep-sea and high-latitude cephalopods. We used a diverse assemblage of specimens ranging from early juveniles to adults for both species. Mature J. diaphana had a mantle length (ML) of 53–144 mm and a body mass (BM) of 18–235 g. A brooding female of J. diaphana captured at 1352 m in the Gulf of California was carrying 1419 eggs in pre-organogenetic stage that measured ~2.5 mm in diameter. The size range of mature V. infernalis was ML 66–122 mm and BM 34–286 g. The number of growth increments in the beaks ranged from 21 to 207 in J. diaphana and from 89 to 375 in V. infernalis. If the growth increments are formed daily, like in tropical octopod species, age estimates are incongruent with the low metabolic rates and reproductive strategies of the two species. These observations suggest that growth increments may require more than one day to be formed. To better understand the life histories of invertebrates in the largest but least studied habitat on the planet, age and growth validation studies are critical.

上层头足类动物Japetella diaphana和Vampyroteuthis infernalis是深层中上层生态系统的魅力十足且分布广泛的成员。它们的生境温度，代谢率，摄食和生殖策略共同表明，与八爪鱼相比，这些物种的生活节奏有所降低，但迄今为止尚无有关寿命，生长速率和年龄估计的信息。为了估计中上层章鱼的生活节奏，本研究调查了J. diaphana（一个章鱼）和V. infernalis的成熟时大小，繁殖策略以及上喙侧壁（LWS）的增长增量数。（吸血鬼）。在某些温带和热带章鱼中，硬质结构（例如，喙和管心）的生长增量的每日沉积已通过实验验证，但仍未量化，并且尚未针对大多数深海和高纬度头足类动物进行验证。对于这两种物种，我们使用了从早期到成年的各种标本组合。成熟的J. diaphana的披风长度（ML）为53-144毫米，体重（BM）为18-235克。在加利福尼亚湾的1352 m处捕获的一头斑驳的J. diaphana雌性在转基因前期携带1419个卵，直径约2.5 mm。成熟的V.infernalis的大小范围是ML 66–122毫米和BM 34–286克。在喙增长增量的数量为21至207 J.鲜黄和从89到375中V. infernalis。如果像热带八爪鱼物种那样每天增加生长，年龄估计与这两种物种的低代谢率和繁殖策略是不一致的。这些观察结果表明，增长增量可能需要一天以上的时间才能形成。为了更好地了解这个星球上最大但研究最少的栖息地中无脊椎动物的生活史，年龄和生长验证研究至关重要。