The Giant squid haunts the nightmares of sailors and the dreams of scientists alike. These massive cephalopods remained a total mystery to humanity for centuries. Consequently, legends of the terrifying Kraken likely started from rare sightings of them at the surface. Furthermore, they patrol the deep ocean where humans cannot easily go to study them. Dive into these slippery details about the real-life sea monster that rules the dark depths.
Giant squids
Giant squids possess the largest eyes in the entire animal kingdom. Specifically, their eyes can grow to the size of a dinner plate to see in the dark.
Strange as it sounds, their brain is shaped exactly like a donut. Therefore, their esophagus must pass directly through the center of their brain to reach the stomach.
This odd anatomy creates a serious eating hazard for the creature. If they swallow a chunk of food that is too large, they can actually cause themselves brain damage.
Giant squid blood is not red like ours, but a deep shade of blue. This happens because their blood uses copper-based hemocyanin to transport oxygen instead of iron.
For a long time, scientists had never seen a living one in the wild. In fact, researchers only captured the first video footage of a live adult in its habitat in 2012.
They do not use air bladders to float like many fish do. Instead, their muscles contain pockets of ammonia solution that is lighter than seawater.
Consequently, this high ammonia content makes the Giant squid taste absolutely terrible. Thus, humans cannot eat calamari rings made from this specific species because they taste like cleaning fluid.
The suction cups on their tentacles are not just soft, rubbery pads. Terrifyingly, each sucker features a ring of serrated teeth that digs into prey for a tight grip.
Sperm whales are their only natural predator in the ocean. Evidence suggests that these battles are epic, as whales often bear circular scars from squid suckers.
Despite their massive size, they live incredibly short lives compared to other large animals. Most scientists believe they live for only about five years, growing at a rapid pace.
They move through the water using a powerful form of jet propulsion. They fill their mantle cavity with water and shoot it out through a siphon to zoom forward.
The Giant squid has three hearts to keep its blue blood moving. Two hearts pump blood to the gills, while the third circulates it to the rest of the body.
Their beak is the only hard part of their entire body. It looks like a parrot’s beak but is strong enough to snap a heavy steel cable.
While they are huge, they are technically not the heaviest invertebrate. The Colossal squid, a close relative, grows shorter but weighs much more than the Giant squid.
Finally, their nerve cells are so large that neuroscientists love to study them. These massive axons help doctors understand how nerve impulses work in humans.
