Three Newfoundlanders—Daniel, Theophilus, along with twelve-year-old Tom—were fishing in their little dory when they noticed an unusual object floating nearby. Out of curiosity they hit it with a boat hook. What a shock they received! Suddenly the waters foamed and a giant squid appeared, attacking them with its flailing tentacles, finally wrapping these around their boat and threatening to capsize it.
Quickly young Tom grabbed the hatchet they were using to cut bait and chopped off a tentacle of the monster. To their great relief, it then gave up the fight and slid back into the ocean.
But if it were not for the portion of the tentacle that lay in the bottom of the boat, it is doubtful that the other fishermen at Conception Bay would have believed their terrifying account. The tentacle portion measured nineteen feet long and three and a half inches around.
For centuries people had heard of legendary sea monsters of all descriptions. It may well be that some of these hair-raising accounts were occasioned by sightings of what scientists now refer to as the greatest living cephalopod, the giant squid. Imagine sighting a sea creature about sixty feet long, having eight powerful arms and two longer tentacles attached to a bullet-shaped body. Its eyes are the size of plates. Its parrotlike beak of a mouth is strong enough to cut heavy wire. It is the largest creature on earth without a backbone.
If frightened, the unusually large nerves of the squid trigger a spontaneous generation of power that propels it at top speed in moments. These nerve fibers, which are one hundred times the size of man’s, are so sensitive that when the squid is threatened, a nerve impulse flashes to all parts of the mantle simultaneously. Reacting with tremendous force, the muscles contract to create a powerful jetlike thrust.
The squid is literally a blue blood of the marine world. Its blood has a bluish color because of a copper compound in it. When it has been depleted of oxygen, it is cycled through the gills by two hearts, pumping it into one gill each. Then a systemic heart serves to pump the fresh blood through the tissues. So, the squid actually has three hearts!
They are equipped with an ink sac. This releases large amounts of black fluid for camouflage, shooting out a blob approximately squid-size to confuse pursuers. An underwater “smoke screen”!
Also helping the squid to elude attackers are small color cells that give it the ability to change colors. These cells are so efficient that they can closely match the color of their background, even causing a wave of color to flow across the body of the squid as it swims from one background to another.
Size. Many wonder how large these giant squids really grow. The largest one examined was found in Lyall Bay, New Zealand, and measured fifty-seven feet long. But only twelve different species of these giants have been classified, and it is possible that other larger ones may exist. In fact, some evidence suggests this.
No doubt, in time much more will be learned about the giant squid and the mysteries that surround this dynamic and awesome creature of the sea.
