Invasion of the Giant Squids

[Sakobav]

From yahoo link

http://buzz.yahoo.com/buzzlog/93359?fp=1

nvasion of the Giant Squids
by Mike Krumboltz

5 hours ago
3,545 Votes

Giant squids! Sorry to startle you, but we're just so excited. You see, they're giant squids! And they're invading California beaches by the hundreds! And in a heavily attended press conference this morning, they announced plans to star in their own reality show!

OK, so maybe that last one hasn't happened (yet), but the rest of it is the honest-to-god truth. An article from the AP explains that the squids weigh up to 60 pounds each, but most tip the scales somewhere between 20 and 40 pounds. And, yes, they squirt ink when irritated.

Web searches on the giant squids (GIANT SQUIDS!) are already off the charts. One-day spikes on both "giant squids" and "giant squids in california" surged from near-zip into the thousands. Folks clearly want to see these gargantuan creatures for themselves.

Despite their intimidating heft and tendency to spew ink, the squids aren't scaring off local fishermen. As of today, around 400 of the giant squids have been nabbed by anglers. That number is likely to rise. An article from San Diego 6 explains that locals "started booking twilight fishing trips over the weekend to catch them."

The last time the giant (aka “jumbo” aka “Humboldt”) squid made waves in Search came last September, when a record-breaking 19 ½-foot-long, 103-lb beast was pulled from the Gulf of Mexico.

Now they're back with a vengeance. Wanna see the new ones for yourself? MyFoxLA hosts a collection of photos of nabbed squids. http://www.myfoxla.com/dpp/news/offbeat ... 56376128-2

[timmy]

Actually, I have a TV show recorded on this very subject! One of the guys has a bunch of very nasty scars from encounters with these critters. He has a chain mesh suit he wears when he dives them now. Considering the beak I dissected from a squid about 250 mm long awhile back, I would guess something this size would truly get one's attention if he decided to put the bite on an arm or leg.

The TV program showed them turning color and linked the color changes to different signals that the squid exchanged when alerted or angry, as I recall.

Back in the Ordovician era, it must have been a crazy time to be a trilobite! (munch munch)

Anyhow, as I got it, the warming oceans have caused the Humboldts to venture further north than normal, so they've moved from where they are common, like the Sea of Cortes, to more trendy digs off of the California beaches. This is evidently playing all kinds of mischief with the fishing industry, since the Humboldts are very effective and insatiable predators.