Architeuthis: Giant squid caught on film. Image courtesy of Discovery Channel/NHK
The giant squid could be something from fairy tales, and is believed to be the basis for the mythical stories of the “Kraken” and other beasts of the sea, but the Architeuthis is real and has been captured on film.
This giant squid, was found in the depths of the Pacific Ocean by researcher Tsunemi Kubodera and his crew after 400 hours spent inside a submarine with two other scientists making completing missions. After seeing the squid 15km east of Chichi Island, Japan, Kubodera said:
“It was shining and so beautiful. I was so thrilled when I saw it first hand, but I was confident we would because we rigorously researched the areas we might find it, based on past data. Researchers around the world have tried to film giant squid in their natural habitats, but all attempts were in vain before.”
A handful of giant squid have been caught in fishing nets over the years, and Kubodera back in 2006 caught a 7m Taningia danae female with a specially baited line, but these images are the first time the bigger Architeuthis has been observed in the wild, swimming 630m below the surface. There is, however, a larger still family of squid called the Mesonychoteuthis, which have yet to be filmed.
The film of the giant squid is to be aired by NHK in Japan and National Geographic in other locations soon.
Architeuthis: Giant squid caught on film. Image courtesy of Discovery Channel/NHK
Here’s a video of the Taningia danae giant squid that was caught in 2006:
