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COLOSSAL SQUID!
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A good friend at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration wrote yesterday to remind me 'some people have a way cooler job
than we do.' After reading this article in Newsweek, I'm inclined to agree...
It sounds like something out of a bad monster movie: a team of scientists busily examines the thawing carcass of a 900-pound colossal squid.
This Wednesday, a 30 foot long, 900-pound colossal squid hauled up from the Antarctic last January will be studied by a team of scientists led by Steve O'Shea,
squid expert and director of the Earth and Oceanic Sciences Research Institute at the
Auckland University of Technology. They'll only have four hours to perform all sorts of tests and measurements.
..studying the suckers and hooks on in its tentacles, measuring its sharp, birdlike beak, examining the contents of its stomach, collecting tissue samples for DNA analysis, trying to determine its sex, its age. All the while, the creature's eyes, which are the size of dinner plates and thought to be the largest in the animal kingdom, stare lifelessly ahead.
Cool, eh? And the best part is that the entire process will be broadcast on the museum's Web site and filmed by the Discovery Channel for documentary release this fall! You can bet I'll be watching. And I have a feeling at least one other marine invertebrate enthusiast will be too...
[Note, the awesomeness of the colassal squid has no bearing on where I stand in the Great Marine Invertebrate Wars. Echinoderms Rule!]
Read the full article here.
Tags: giant squid, marine biology, ocean
4 Comments
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April 28, 2008 6:37 PM
Chris Alchin
This is a great find! These days, It seems that we know more about outer space-stars, planets, etc.- than we really know about the inner space of our own planet.
I hope this discovery will spur on more oceanographical research by our young people.
April 29, 2008 8:08 AM
Rich
I love these monsters of the deep! Like you said a while back on the other blog.. We really are the Mr. Magoo's of this planet! So much to discover!
April 29, 2008 8:46 AM
Philip H.
This invert enthusiast will be watching as well, thouhg I still think nudibranchs reign as the kings of cool inverts. Plus, they give you a legitimate reason to say "nudi" in a sentence.
May 2, 2008 9:40 AM
Dave
Sheril, I hope you post pics from the research!
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