The "northern" form, which is found in the waters surrounding Taiwan, Hong Kong and Japan, produces a much larger, darker and more robust shell that can reach 120 mm and has the characteristic winged protrusions.

[4] Males of this species reach sexual maturity at a mantle length (ML) of about 7 mm, presumably the maximum size attained.

[2][3] Gilbert L. Voss and Gordon Williamson observed six freshly mated female A. hians off Hong Kong that were swimming along in a string.

[2] The argonaut was observed using the jellyfish as cover, rotating the animal to hide itself from potential predators (in this case the photographer).

The argonaut was also seen using the jellyfish as a 'hunting platform', as it "manoeuvered its host close to a smaller comb jelly, quickly grasped it with another pair of tentacles and devoured it".

[2] A. hians appears to be closely related to the smaller A. bottgeri from the Indian Ocean and A. cornuta from the north-east Pacific.

The oldest known fossil material of A. hians originates from the middle Pliocene Sadowara Formation of southwestern Japan.