The Cuttlefish Research Project Revealing Raja Ampat’s Master of Disguise

Dr. Matteo Santon is a sensory biologist and marine visual ecologist who studies how animals use color, pattern, and vision to hunt or hide. He is a senior researcher at the University of Padova in Italy, with a research affiliation at the University of Bristol's Ecology of Vision group.

Santon first arrived in Raja Ampat at the end of 2022, after colleagues described the broadclub cuttlefish to him: a large, reef-associated species known for elaborate hunting displays rarely seen up close. His research team includes co-authors Jolyon Troscianko and Martin How of the University of Bristol, along with Charlie Heatubun of the University of Papua, who helped arrange research permits and field logistics in Indonesia.

Two 2025 papers, published in Science Advances and Ecology, document how broadclub cuttlefish hunt on Raja Ampat's reefs. One display, the passing-stripe pattern, sends dark bands rippling across the cuttlefish's body as it approaches prey.

Unlike traditional camouflage, which typically relies on staying still and blending into the surroundings, this pattern moves with the predator. To a human eye, that movement can make the cuttlefish easier to spot.

For prey with more limited vision, such as crabs or shrimp, the moving stripes appear to overwhelm their ability to detect the predator's approach, a form of motion camouflage rather than a conspicuous signal. The passing-stripe display is only one of at least four distinct hunting displays broadclub cuttlefish use, alongside patterns the researchers call leaf, branching coral, and pulse.

Which display a cuttlefish uses depends on the prey and habitat, so the same animal can look markedly different from one hunt to the next.

Both 2025 papers are based entirely on wild, undisturbed cuttlefish, not captive animals studied in a lab. The researchers worked the house reef around Kri Island, most often starting from the jetty at Kri Eco Resort and following the reef out from there.

They have also dived Sorido Bay Resort's Blue Hole, giving them further opportunity to observe the cuttlefish in their natural habitat. Papua Diving Resorts founder Max Ammer and the on-site team provided the logistics support that made years of repeat fieldwork possible, and Charlie Heatubun helped arrange the Indonesian research permits.

This kind of fieldwork is a direct example of what the Raja Ampat Research and Conservation Centre supports: a majority of the resorts' net profit goes toward hosting scientists, students, and researchers working in the region. The RARCC also supports other research projects and documentary production teams by providing the logistical support they need to work in the remote areas of Raja Ampat.

The passing-stripe display has implications that reach past marine biology. The same disruptive-motion principles the researchers documented have potential applications for machine vision, including how drones might detect and avoid obstacles while navigating cluttered environments.

Santon is also interested in extending the work toward biodiversity monitoring in Raja Ampat, tracking how climate change and human activity affect these reefs over time. For guests, that means a cuttlefish sighting is not only a photo opportunity.

It is a chance to watch behavior that is now part of the published, peer-reviewed record of marine science.

Broadclub cuttlefish are commonly spotted on the house reefs and surrounding dive sites around Kri Island, and individual animals often hold the same territory for extended periods. Slowing down and watching a cuttlefish for several minutes is far more likely to reveal a hunting display than swimming past.

Dive guides at Sorido Bay Resort and Kri Eco Resort can point guests toward cuttlefish known to frequent specific reef sections, improving the odds of a longer encounter. Photographers working with the Raja Ampat SEACAM Center can put that patience to particularly good use, since the passing-stripe display rewards a steady hand and a few extra minutes of observation.

The cuttlefish drifting past on a Raja Ampat dive is not just a striking photo subject. It is an active research subject helping scientists understand animal camouflage, and a stay at our resorts puts guests on the same reefs where that work is happening.

See Raja Ampat's cuttlefish for yourself. Check availability at Sorido Bay Resort and Kri Eco Resort and plan a dive trip today.