Friday Cephalopod: What you'll see just before he eats you

i-cc2c8fe785f59775837a4d957ecd5870-humboldt_attacks.jpg
Dosidicus gigas, the Humboldt Squid

This is a still from a movie by the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (31MB Quicktime). I've also edited down a slightly more bandwidth-friendly 4.6MB version that shows just the action at the time of the strike.

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Last week, PZ, I accused you of having dinner plate sized eyes after posting at 1am and 6am. I regret that statement. It seems that you pre-schedule posts, especially ones like these. I think this is a jolly good idea (as we Brits say), as it spreads the interest of new posts over a longer time period.

By astromcnaught (not verified) on 27 Jul 2007 #permalink

Mike-- Dig that kid smacking the squid after he catches it. Someone needs to smack HIM around while he's struggling for his life. Might teach him a lesson about compassion.

It needs a caption like that line out of Men in Black: "Ever pull the wings off a fly? Wanna see the fly get even?"

Something like: "Just one word for you, ape-boy: CALAMARI!"

By Ian H Spedding FCD (not verified) on 27 Jul 2007 #permalink

AAAGH! That's just about when I lose my mouthpiece, fumble my knife out of the sheath and watch as it drifts away from my grasping fingers into the depths.

Unfortunately, that was a sacrificial squid. Humbolts are in league with Architeuthis. Watch for future incidents where the smaller Humbolt takes one for the team to distract the humans while an Architeuthis scores the boat and all the people on it.

Let me add on to your scenario. Small Humbolt takes one for the team, Architeuthis scores a couple people, Mesonychoteuthis takes the boat down. Don't forget a few slaps in the face for the kid, either.

Out of curiosity, were Humboldt squid always off the Californian coast, or did they start migrating in from Peru recently?