The first mention of this singlerepresentative of the genus Mesonychoteuthis belong to the beginning of the XX century. The famous zoologist Robson GK described a colossal squid, whose weight reached half a ton. In subsequent years, information about him was not received, and the giant creature was almost forgotten. But in 1970, the larvae of this deep-sea monster were found, and 9 years later an adult specimen over one meter in length was found. For the first time the world learned about the existence of these mollusks in 1856. After the scientist Stanstrup decided to compare the size of the beak found on the ocean, with the size of a normal squid. The result was shocking - according to the received data it turned out that the shellfish should be simply huge.
The colossal squid has an elongatedtorpedo-shaped body. The length of his mantle reaches three meters, and along with the tentacles - all ten. Weight of especially large representatives can be 500 kilograms. However, there is information about larger mollusks 20 meters long and weighing more than a ton, but these data have not been documented.
The mantle is wide, the last third of its lengthcompletes a narrow, pointed tail surrounded by thick, thick, terminal fins. They make up almost half the length of the body of the mollusc and in a straightened form form a shape resembling a heart. The mantle is soft, about 5-6 cm thick. The cranial and occipital cartilages are thick, short, slightly curved; in adults, tubercles are deprived.
Amazing eyes have a colossal squid.The photo below provides a good overview. Consisting of two photophores, they are truly huge - their diameter reaches 27 centimeters. Such giant eyes are not possessed by any of the known animals on the planet.
The tentacles are equipped with two rows of round suckerson maces, two rows of hooks medially located, and small lateral suckers. Also, the squid has powerful long hunters, massive at the base with a wide membrane and thin ends. On tentacles-captures, or rather in their middle part, there are several pairs of hooded-shaped hooks, and the lower part of them is equipped with suckers.
The main weapon that a colossal squid possesses is a hard, powerful chitin beak.
Встречается гигантский моллюск преимущественно в Antarctic waters, where it can form clusters of several individuals. In the northern regions, their numbers are smaller, and they hunt mostly singly. Also, squid is found off the coast of South Africa, New Zealand and South America.
Antarctic colossal squid, photowhich is located here, is found at a depth of 2-4 thousand meters and almost does not surface. This makes it difficult to study its behavior under natural conditions.
The place of a hypothetical finding of a mollusc can bedetermine the surface water temperature. So, the greatest probability of meeting with him is possible at a water temperature from -0.9 to 0 ºС. From December to March they can be seen in high Antarctic latitudes.
Sexual dimorphism is somewhat unusual -females of colossal squid are much larger than males. Remains of mollusks of both sexes were found in the stomachs of sperm whales. The length of their bodies was 80-250 centimeters, and the mass of up to 250 kilograms. The largest in the history of colossal squid was caught by New Zealand fishermen in 2007 in the Antarctic waters. The length of his mantle was 3 m, the total length - 10 m, and weight - 495 kg.
Of course, little is known about the life of these giant mollusksthat is known, but scientists were able to identify their unique ability. Their body contains a large amount of ammonium chloride, contributing to a decrease in specific gravity, which gives squid neutral buoyancy. Due to this they can dissect the thickness of the water, practically not moving. Thus, predators have the ability to mask and wait for their prey. Swamping too close prey they grab hold of tentacles and tear it with hooks.
Giant food mainly glowsanchovies, mesopelagic fishes, Antarctic toothfish. However, cannibalism is not excluded in their genus. Adult mollusks can eat fry and immature individuals of their kind.
Sexually mature individuals become when the length of the mantle is not less than 1 meter, and the weight - more than 25 kg. Spawning occurs at the end of winter or early spring.
Despite its impressive size, the colossalThe squid, described above, has its enemies. The main one is the sperm whale. It was possible to find out this from the discovered remnants of colossal squid in their stomachs. Small immature individuals can eat albatrosses and Antarctic toothfishes.
Naturally, a particularly serious enemydeep-sea mollusk is a man. Delicate squid meat is used for cooking various dishes. However, if we make a traditional dish of Kalamari from this giant, the diameter of the rings cut from it will be comparable with the diameter of the tires of the tractor.
About giant squids, more precisely about their attacks on people, was written in many works of art. The most famous of them are the works of Jules Verne.
But in life there are also cases when a colossal squid attacked ships. So, one of the precedents occurred with the French sailors during the round-the-world race.
According to one of their sailors Olivier deKerusuasona, the shellfish grabbed their yacht forage literally a few hours after they left Brittany. The sailors told us that the deep-water giant had wrapped the ship with his thick, thicker human legs, tentacles, and began to pull the ship into the sea. With two tentacles, he blocked the steering wheel of the ship. But fortunately, yachtsmen did not have to fight off him. As soon as the yacht stopped, the mollusk loosened its grip and disappeared into the depths of the ocean.
As later told the sailors, the length of the squid's body exceeded 8 meters, and if the creature was more aggressive, it would be able to turn and drown the yacht.
A total of about 250 scientists were registeredcases of meeting a man with a colossal squid, but only a few managed to see this giant alive. Scientists did not have such an opportunity. They have to study only the remains extracted from the stomachs of marine predators, and bodies thrown ashore or caught by sailors.
Although little known, but incomparable to any oneanother representative of his class is a colossal squid. Dimensions, photos of him can hit anyone. Deep-sea colossus, according to some information, reach a length of 20 meters and have a weight of up to a ton.
How many years live in the world these giants, remains a mystery. It is possible that very little, since the life expectancy of many of the already studied species of squid is just over a year.
