Half-ton Colossal Squid Reveals Secrets of the Deep

n 2007, a 30 ft-long (10 m) squid was caught on a fishing line in Antarctic waters. The colossal squid was taken to New Zealand where an autopsy was performed on the half-ton female last August. The dissection revealed the squid was “a ‘giant gelatinous blob’, would have been sluggish and highly vulnerable to predators”, and was carrying partially developed eggs. Scientists believe she may have been feeding from the fishermen’s nets rather than hunting naturally because of her condition.

The same squid was found to have eyes the size of soccer balls – the biggest recorded – which were rimmed with light-emitting organs thought to play a role in cloaking the animal from prey.