A Refresher on Why This is Called Cephaloblog

Photo Courtesy of NationalGeographic.com
Photo Courtesy of NationalGeographic.com

Because I LOVE giant squid (a type of cephalopod)!

So, you can see why I’d be excited that, in one of the coolest things to happen to me since Kubodera got video of a LIVE giant squid right before Christmas in 2006*, a photographer from National Geographic has captured photos of an adult female sperm whale with the remains of a 30-foot giant squid in her mouth, near the Pacific Ocean’s surface off of the Bonin Islands in Japan.

The observations of the group of five adult whales and one calf not only reveal that sperm whales do, in fact, actively hunt and consume giant squid, but that they also possibly use these catches to train their babies to do the same.

Photo Courtesy of NationalGeographic.com
Photo Courtesy of NationalGeographic.com

The photographer, Tony Wu, said the whales kept diving in unison. “It seemed as if the adult whales were trying to teach the baby to dive and also to eat squid.”

My old buddy Steve O’Shea**, who is a passionate and devoted giant squid expert (and is likely peeing his pants over the discovery), confirms this and attests to the rareness of these photos.

Now, for a squid lover like me, of course a certain sadness accompanies these photos. I like to imagine the giant squid kicking the sperm whales ass, or at least putting up a hell of a fight (and who knows, maybe he did) but the reality is that giant squid are eaten by sperm whales all the time. Finding their beaks in the bellies of beached sperm whales is what helped to prove that they actually did exist and weren’t just mythical sea monsters for so long.

Oh, that and I’ve seen plenty of photos of dead giant squid. It’s the photos of live ones that are really intriguing!

It may be hard for people to remember (or care) but until photos taken in 2005 (also by Tsunemi Kubodera), we had never seen a live giant squid before, period. Before this, they were merely creatures of myth – elusive, and taunting us with evidence of their existence without actually showing themselves.

Which is the whole reason, as a young stripling, I became interested in the animals in the first place.

It started with a vintage illustrated encyclopedia of animals, that was likely my father’s when he was a little tyke. I always opened it right to the ocean section – my favorite – and as I turned the pages, and the shades of the blue background got darker and darker as the animals lived deeper and deeper, I came upon my favorite illustration: a large and mighty sperm whale, teeth bared in its open jaw, entangled in the many tentacles of a giant squid, in ferocious battle. The caption insinuated something along the lines of the giant squid, (genus: Architeuthis), never being seen alive.

I was fascinated – how could something so huge (there are claims of sightings of giant squid 60 feet in length) never be seen alive? How could something so huge exist without ever getting “caught”? How could something with eyes that can grow bigger than a human head – the largest in the animal kingdom (which we know is not so, anymore, since the discovery of the colossal squid) – never be seen by human eyes?

I was captivated by this animal (and many other giant sea creatures – including whales, sharks and the possibly nonexistent Loch Ness monster) for years, and tried to learn as much as I could about them, reading books, articles and watching TV programs about the search for the giant squid.

In the last few years, since we’ve found and filmed live giant squid (and as a result, had a fresher, less deteriorated carcass to study), we’ve learned a lot more about them. Generally, they probably don’t ever kick sperm whale’s asses (although I still like to hold out hope that just once in awhile, they do), but they do die trying, and many whales have the scars to prove it. The reason we hardly ever see them is because they’re deep-ocean dwellers that only make it to the surface when something’s wrong – if they travel too far up, the change in temperature makes it hard for them to get back down to their natural habitat, as they risk suffocation because the warmer water affects the oxygenation of their blood and their buoyancy.

But this newfound knowledge hasn’t altered my feelings for them – it only makes me curious to learn more. Which is probably why people that have met me and know about my squid obsession tend to pass a plethora of squid-related things my way (which I LOVE – please keep doing this!).

For my 23rd birthday, my friend Julia gave me a children’s book on giant squid because she thought I would like the beautiful illustrations (I did – they’re awesome). The book was published in 2003, and even then, was all about how giant squid remain one of the sea’s greatest mysteries because we’ve never found a live one!

*And I said the word “fuck” in front of my mother for the first time (with the exception of “Broccoli fucks” when I was 6 and didn’t know what the word meant – and had to chomp down on a bar of soap as a result) because I was so excited!

** Steve O’Shea is not actually my buddy but I adore his commitment to the quest for giant squid and look forward to hearing his comments when any such discovery is made!

Please Help Ammre

On a side note, my friend Ammre (you may remember her from A Day in the Life of a GTA, and as an oft contributor of squid-related content to Cephaloblog) – one of the most active, talented, inspiring people I know – has been rendered virtually bedridden for several months now because of a back injury. Because of the incredible pain resulting from her injury, she is unable to work, and because she is unable to work, she doesn’t have the insurance or funds needed to receive proper medical care. It is a terrible situation, and she really needs help. If you’re able to spare anything at all to donate to her PayPal fund, I know she’ll be overwhelmingly appreciative. Every little bit helps – so help Ammre if you can!


2 thoughts on “A Refresher on Why This is Called Cephaloblog”

  1. I seriously don’t remember either of those times when you launched the f-bomb on me. I do recall the soap incident, but couldn’t remeber why. Although now I find “broccoli f***s” extremly funny…..

  2. That is hilarious because both times mentally scarred me! Especially the second time when I saw the squid – I was really embarrassed!

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