It belongs to the Nautilidae family of Tetrabranchia order in Uephalopoda class. Its Latin scientific name is Nautilus pompilius.
Its outer shell is in the shape of volute in brilliant colors. It has tens of tentacles but no cupule.
Dwelling in the sea bottom, it rests at seabed by day and moves about at night. Mainly relying on the reaction of jet stream sprayed from infundibulum, it can move forward, back off and turn round. It can control body's ups and downs by freely adjusting the gas distribution in the air chamber of its body. As a carnivore, it feeds on crabs, mussel, urchin and fishes living at seabed.
Nautilus mainly inhabits in the sea area of tropical and subtropical zones, and also in Taiwan Island and South China Sea islands in China. Being the only existing genus of Tetrabranchia order in Cephalopod class, it is of high value for research on biologic evolution system.
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