IanGiant Squid
September 19th 2006 03:53
Once believed to be mythical creatures, tales of giant squid have been common among mariners since ancient times, and may have led to the Norwegian legend of the Kraken, a tentacled sea monster as large as an island capable of engulfing and sinking any ship.
It wasn't until a portion of a giant squid was secured by the French gunboat Alecton in 1861 that wide recognition of the species/genus was established in the scientific community.
Giant squid, are squid of the Architeuthidae family, represented by as many as eight species of the genus Architeuthis. They are deep-ocean dwelling animals that can grow to a tremendous size: recent estimates put the maximum size at 10 meters (34 ft) for males and 13 meters (44 ft) for females from caudal fin to the tip of the two long tentacles (second only to the Colossal Squid at an estimated 14 meters (46 ft), one of the largest living organisms).
Most giant squid specimens tend to be those that have washed up dead on beaches, or been retrieved from the stomach of sperm whales; they tend to be in quite poor condition. The find of a large, complete specimen is extremely rare. Below are some photos of giant squid found by fishermen around the world. More can be seen here.
*These images used with permission from Ezprezzo.
**This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation Licence. It uses material from the Wikipedia article Giant squid.
It wasn't until a portion of a giant squid was secured by the French gunboat Alecton in 1861 that wide recognition of the species/genus was established in the scientific community.
Giant squid, are squid of the Architeuthidae family, represented by as many as eight species of the genus Architeuthis. They are deep-ocean dwelling animals that can grow to a tremendous size: recent estimates put the maximum size at 10 meters (34 ft) for males and 13 meters (44 ft) for females from caudal fin to the tip of the two long tentacles (second only to the Colossal Squid at an estimated 14 meters (46 ft), one of the largest living organisms).
Most giant squid specimens tend to be those that have washed up dead on beaches, or been retrieved from the stomach of sperm whales; they tend to be in quite poor condition. The find of a large, complete specimen is extremely rare. Below are some photos of giant squid found by fishermen around the world. More can be seen here.
Giant squid arm or tentacle suckers with teeth.
Tentacle suckers.
*These images used with permission from Ezprezzo.
**This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation Licence. It uses material from the Wikipedia article Giant squid.
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