In ancient Greece, such famous figures as Aristotle and Pliny the Elder first wrote about the existence of giant squid. Over the millennia there were seafaring stories of giant squid or giant octopuses rising out of the depths and snatching sailors overboard. There were even tales of large sailing vessels being overturned by the same. However, the science world kept its powder dry; no substantial evidence supported giant squid.
That was until the late 1700s. Since then, over 600 specimens have been discovered, though the vast majority were dead. They had been found either washed ashore or floating in the oceans and several were found in the stomachs of sperm whales. Obviously, the giant squid wasn’t that big!
It was not until 2001 that a live giant squid was filmed swimming in the ocean. Three years later an underwater photographer managed to take the first pictures of a giant squid swimming deep under the surface. It was perhaps this series of photographs that indicated why they were difficult to find and where they normally lived. It would seem that they spend much of their time deep underwater and away from people.
So, how big do you have to be to be called a giant squid? Most of the dead specimens have measured no more than five metres in length which is still fairly large. But there have been uncorroborated sightings that describe them as being over 20 metres in length. I think we have to take these tales with a pinch of sea salt.
Much is still not known about them. For example, we do not know for sure how many species there are or how long they live. We do know where they have been sighted or found. These include the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans along with the Southern Ocean.
Finally, if you think the label of giant squid is not really earned, there is another species called the colossal squid. Very few specimens have been discovered and it would appear to live in the waters of the Antarctic. One specimen was found dead and when measurements were taken, the eyes were found to be 27 centimetres across or 11 inches. This now holds the record as the largest eyes ever discovered on an animal of any sort. Estimates of its overall size put it at between 12 to 14 metres in length or 40 to 45 feet. That’s more impressive.
John Pullen 