"Long Arm" Giant Squid recorded on video

Forums: Giant Squid, Video, Science, Animals, Squid
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It's very rare to see a video of giant squid in their habitat. This one's only a brief glimpse but I find squid fascinating.

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Today (6-27-08) a man who has been installing video equipment at the aquarium for the last several days, come into our husbandry office and asked if we could identify a "creature" that his friend, who works on an oil rig, caught on tape from an ROV. He described a ray like thing with 30ft tentacles!! He wasn't far off as you can see for your self. It doesn't get much more alien than this. I just identified it as belonging to the species Magnapinna, or Big Fin squid, though this one is more commonly known as the Long Arm Squid. They get as big as 5 meters! Take special note of the depth! 7828ft. Enjoy everyone!!

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@Robert Gentel,

I seem to remember that John Craig (Danger is My Business) photo'd giant squid back in the thirties or forties..
different technology, big effort.
He was a friend of my father's.. used to come to dinner at our house and scare nine year old me... but a great story teller; had an early fifties tv program.
He was an early diver with all the old paraphenalia that went with diving.

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@ossobuco,

From what I have read, the first time was in 2004.

Wikipedia wrote:

The first photographs of a live giant squid in its natural habitat were taken on September 30, 2004, by Tsunemi Kubodera (National Science Museum of Japan) and Kyoichi Mori (Ogasawara Whale Watching Association). Their teams had worked together for nearly two years to accomplish this. They used a five-ton fishing boat and only two crew members. The images were created on their third trip to a known sperm whale hunting ground 970 kilometres (600 mi) south of Tokyo, where they had dropped a 900 metres (3,000 ft) line baited with squid and shrimp. The line also held a camera and a flash. After over 20 tries that day, an 8 metres (26 ft) giant squid attacked the lure and snagged its tentacle. The camera took over 500 photos before the squid managed to break free after four hours. The squid's 5.5 metres (18 ft) tentacle remained attached to the lure. Later DNA tests confirmed the animal as a giant squid.

On September 27, 2005, Kubodera and Mori released the photographs to the world. The photo sequence, taken at a depth of 900 metres (3,000 ft) off Japan's Ogasawara Islands, shows the squid homing in on the baited line and enveloping it in "a ball of tentacles." The researchers were able to locate the likely general location of giant squid by closely tailing the movements of sperm whales. According to Kubodera, "we knew that they fed on the squid, and we knew when and how deep they dived, so we used them to lead us to the squid." Kubodera and Mori reported their observations in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society.

...

On December 4, 2006, an adult giant squid was finally caught on video by Kubodera near the Ogasawara Islands, 1,000 kilometres (620 mi) south of Tokyo. It was a small female about 3.5 metres (11 ft) long and weighing 50 kilograms (110 lb). It was pulled aboard the research vessel but died in the process.

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@Robert Gentel,

That may be what someone posts on wiki.

I - damn it - gave away the Danger is My Business book decades ago. Craig was an air force colonel (or some similar stance) and didn't fib.. major photographer. My memory re the squid may be just that he was 'in place' with a giant, as told at the dining room table, but also maybe not. I figure the tv episodes are long lost, but that would have been a key one. Well, who knows, I'm not in touch with his family to query.

My father was head of photo for the bikini bomb tests. I think Craig was number 2, sharp.

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@ossobuco,

So, to me the question is not re Craig, but re my memory re the squid story/tv series. I can alllllllllmost recall his telling about the squid, and he always had a camera.

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@ossobuco,

ossobuco wrote:

That may be what someone posts on wiki.

You can always check the references cited when in doubt.

National Geographic: Holy Squid! Photos Offer First Glimpse of Live Deep-Sea Giant

BBC: A live, adult giant squid has been caught on camera in the wild for the very first time.

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@Robert Gentel,

What do I care about wiki refs when I remember Craig at our dining room table many times, and later visiting his home and family. I'm 99 and 44/100 percent sure that he told us about the squid scenario when I was nine or ten. I presume pics by him aren't online. I've pics by my father that aren't online either.

I recently looked up John Farrow references, and see scads of stuff missing on wiki (also a friend of my parents).

Wiki is not ex cathedra.

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@ossobuco,

Listen... I've a photo of my mother with Marilyn Monroe's mother, in a group of roller skaters. I'm not a dolt here. I am not someone who needs to check wiki to corroborate my posts.

On the other hand, I learn from wiki. Just don't assume I'm stupid.

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@Robert Gentel,

Wow!!!

I wonder if the giant variety do those amazing light-shows/colour changes when they are courting or communicating for other reasons, that their smaller cousins do?

Imagine if they did and seeing it!

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@ossobuco,

Well I was trying to show you that it's not a Wikipedia claim, but rather something that is common knowledge to marine biologists. If you'd like to believe otherwise that's fine with me.

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@Robert Gentel,

Robert - so to refute I need to go south of common knowledge and look to the book by Craig. This has never been that important to me, but I discern a certain, ah.. condescension from the those with recent stats.

I'm not clear, what are marine biologists telling me? I'm arguing about who photo'd a giant squid first. What are you arguing about?

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@dlowan,

As far as I know they are capable of it. It sure would be neat to see, as a kid I caught a small squid in Japan when I caught an octopus and put it in the same Styrofoam container the squid started changing colors (didn't work, the octopus killed it).

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@ossobuco,

ossobuco wrote:

I'm not clear, what are marine biologists telling me? I'm arguing about who photo'd a giant squid first. What are you arguing about?

To be honest I'd rather not argue about this at all osso. I was just providing information and if you don't find it convincing that's really fine with me.

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@Robert Gentel,

What looks oddish to me is the way the animal seems to have some of its tentacles sticking out horizontally from its body, then going down in near perfect right angles.

Looks more insect-like than anything. Looks kind of alien.

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@Robert Gentel,

I'd rather not argue either..

No, clearly I wasn't convinced.

You saw a video and tapped into what is going on in marine bio and quoted sites.

I remember, in the fifties, dinners and talks and a tv series.

So what? we're both interested in marine life.

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The term "giant squid" may be the issue. The family of Architeuthes contains several genera of what became known as "giant squids". Architeuthis,Mesonychoteuthis,Tasmanoteuthis and Moroteuthis. these genera each have several species and these have only been filmed recently. However, The desodichus andmaganapinnae have been known and photoed for several decades. The Moroteuthis (Humbolt squid) is a very aggressive semi giant that hangs around the Sea of Cortez and can be a real threat to divers because of its aggressive behavior and curiosity.Several divers have taken pics of Humbolts in the early 20th century and maybe Craigs was of this species , since Craig was known to ive (hard hat) in the Sea of Cortez.
Ive never seen the Tv show cause I was just being born when Craigs show reportedly aired.
I too love the reports by news agencies thatmany of the films taken by scientists were "firsts". They were firsts at filming these specific creatures at such great depths,but remember , the very name for giant squid was given by Aristotle and there are photos of giant squids after starnding from Newfoundland in the late 1800's.

Giant squids, as presently reported are exclusively those of the family Architeuthis , whereas the Magnapinnae (which includes the long arm squid) isnt included as isnt the Humbolt squid, which can get to be about 12 feet including arms.

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@farmerman,

I buy that.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Cool video Robert.

It does look rather insect like.

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@Robert Gentel,

It's a cool film. Thanks.

The animal's posture is interesting. It seems to be trying to hold it's legs out away from its body, probably to increase the size of the area it can dangle them in (to catch prey). It's interesting that it does this by making an almost 90 degree angle at the top, rather than slowly spreading them all the way down. I wonder if this is partly a defensive posture caused by having a bright light shined on it.

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@Robert Gentel,

I too was struck by the tentacles.

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@littlek,

did he leave any marks when he struck you?

When I look at the weird arm position and the right and gle bend, I get reminded of the alien ships in WAr of the Worlds.

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"Long Arm" Giant Squid recorded on video

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