Squid are majestic, fascinating creatures, the closest we’ll get to seeing alien life on our home planet. That doesn’t mean we want them anywhere near us, of course, which makes this video of a giant squid just chilling in Toyama Bay a little worrying.
This wasn’t a squid hunt, either; this squid just turned up in the bay, much to the surprise of pretty much everybody who saw it. For those keeping track, currently the internet is arguing over whether this is indeed the giant squid, Architeuthis Dux, or another species that’s grown to an unusual size, or a new species altogether. The truth is that we just don’t know enough about Architeuthis to make that call yet; seeing it outside the deep, deep sea is an extreme rarity, and obviously we’re not going to drag this thing out of the ocean to give it a species check.
If it is a giant squid, though, it does raise the question of what it’s doing in warmer, shallower waters than it usually hangs out in. Usually, you see animals enter new environments because they’re running low on food or looking for mating opportunities. Let’s hope this guy goes back where he belongs; nobody wants an entire bay full of horny, hungry squid.
(Via Vice)
