Eight-year-old Virginia O'Hanlon wrote the editor of the New York Sun in 1897 and asked whether Santa Claus was real. The answer to her query entitled "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus" written by Francis Pharcellus Church became a classic. But if Virginia were alive today, might she be wondering if other legendary stories are real? The answer to one such story might be entitled "Yes, Virginia, there is a Giant Squid."
Scientists who specialize in the study of cephalopods, which include the Giant Squid, are called Teuthologists; and as they develop new equipment and techniques, new squid species are being discovered. Presently, ten species of large squid are numbered among the 200 different squid and octopus species. But as far as anyone knows, none of these large species come close in size to the Giant Squid. Just how big are they?
Based on pieces of Giant Squid carcasses found in sperm whale stomachs, they might grow to 100 ft. The largest reported so far was nearly 60 ft. counting the length of the tentacles. This squid has a beak-like mouth encased in muscle that is strong enough to cut through a steel cable. It has five pairs of arms with one pair that is thinner and longer than the others. These two remind me of cowboy lassos. They are like long ropes each having a flattened end covered on one side with suckers. With these, the Giant Squid grabs and pulls its prey to its mouth. The other tentacles, which compare in size to large Anaconda snakes, are lined with 200-300 suckers in two rows. Each sucker has a sharpened ring around it like "teeth." The Giant Squid propels itself by siphoning water through a funnel-like structure from the front of its body to the back. Its average weight is estimated to be up to 660 lbs., and it has the largest eye in the animal kingdom of up to 18" in diameter. Giant Squid are carnivorous and one of the fish it is known to hunt is the Hoki fish, which grow to 2-3 feet long.
A creature lurks in the ocean depths that has fueled mankind's speculation for the past 2,000 years. A few juveniles have washed ashore. Tiny babies have been captured and kept alive for a short time. Early sailors knew them as sea monsters. This is the Giant Squid otherwise known as the genus, Architeuthis, the name being given to it by Jappetus Steenstrup in 1857. It means "ruling" or "chief" squid. Very little else is known about the massive creature beyond its name. No one knows anything about its mating habits or whether it lives a solitary life.
Scientists who specialize in the study of cephalopods, which include the Giant Squid, are called Teuthologists; and as they develop new equipment and techniques, new squid species are being discovered. Presently, ten species of large squid are numbered among the 200 different squid and octopus species. But as far as anyone knows, none of these large species come close in size to the Giant Squid. Just how big are they?
Based on pieces of Giant Squid carcasses found in sperm whale stomachs, they might grow to 100 ft. The largest reported so far was nearly 60 ft. counting the length of the tentacles. This squid has a beak-like mouth encased in muscle that is strong enough to cut through a steel cable. It has five pairs of arms with one pair that is thinner and longer than the others. These two remind me of cowboy lassos. They are like long ropes each having a flattened end covered on one side with suckers. With these, the Giant Squid grabs and pulls its prey to its mouth. The other tentacles, which compare in size to large Anaconda snakes, are lined with 200-300 suckers in two rows. Each sucker has a sharpened ring around it like "teeth." The Giant Squid propels itself by siphoning water through a funnel-like structure from the front of its body to the back. Its average weight is estimated to be up to 660 lbs., and it has the largest eye in the animal kingdom of up to 18" in diameter. Giant Squid are carnivorous and one of the fish it is known to hunt is the Hoki fish, which grow to 2-3 feet long.
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