How does a squid use its tentacles to swim?

Illustration of squid swimming in a tail-first and arms-first orientation. Squids swim by flapping/undulating their fins and using a pulsatile jet, while their arms are important for generation of lift and for stability control. read more

Tentacles are not used in swimming. It has a small water holding pouch which it fills up, closes it tightly & through a pout whose angle can be positioned to any degree, releases the trapped water through this & it moved through the Newton’s third law of motion in water. read more

After swimming alongside its clubs, the squid coils both the tentacles and clubs and hides them within its arms before swimming away. In this photograph, a Grimalditeuthis bonplandi squid has coiled its tentacles and club inside of its arms, and is swimming away from the camera. read more