Just before Roper and his colleagues set out to investigate the mile-deep Kaikoura Canyon near New Zealand, local fishing boats hauled in four giant squid bodies.

After this discovery, they knew that they were on the right track. “It’s a matter of [spending] time in the water,” explains Roper, who compares the search to that for a rare bird in a spacious woodland: “If you spend enough time there, you will eventually see that bird.

Using a robot submersible vehicle equipped with a video camera, the crew recorded hours of footage of underwater life, but no giant squid.

“We’ll be going back to Kaikoura,” says Roper, who is raising funds for a future expedition to track down the giant squid, the creature he calls “the new dinosaur.”

He explained that he needs only a few minutes of giant squid footage to learn a great deal about the animal. “It will tell us about locomotion, and whether it is shy, neutral, or aggressive; if it is solitary or appears in pairs or schools.” His advice to anyone interested in these elusive creatures? “Join the hunt.”