We are going to continue with our adventure in the ocean by looking for an animal that is hardly ever seen by the human eye. No, I am not talking about the Loch Ness Monster, we are looking for an intriguing creature known as the Bigfin Squid. My guess is they received this common name as a result of the incredibly large fins found not these unique creatures. I am willing to bet that this common name came from looking at a juvenile species as oppose to observing the adult. Why do I say this? Let’s go for a swim and find out.
No Adults Allowed
I am pretty confident it was a juvenile Bigfin Squid that resulted in their common name since all the data researchers have collected thus far on this creature comes from the larval, paralarval and juvenile stages. In fact, researchers are not 100% positive that we have even seen an adult specimen. Crazy to think that there may still be some odd creatures we have yet to observe. Although, there is a possibility that videos of a creature nick-named the “Long-Arm Squid” is indeed the adult version of today’s featured animal…but these are just guesses based on the morphology of the animals. Just so you know the picture above is of the “Long-Arm Squid” since I am an optimist and believe this is indeed a photo of the adult Bigfin Squid.
Sweeping or Ambushing?
As you can imagine, we really don’t know a whole lot about how this squid lives and interacts with the ecosystem…heck, we aren’t even sure if we have seen a grown up Bigfin Squid. Nonetheless, this doesn’t stop biologist from speculating how this particular squid feeds. It is believed that they drag their long tentacles along the ocean floor kicking up all kinds of tasty organisms for them to feast upon. Another theory is the Bigfin Squid simply sits and waits for their prey to bump into their incredibly long arms before they quickly capture and consume their scrumptious meal. Personally, I think the first option would be more justifiable but that is just a hunch. Let me know what you think – do they drag their arms or wait to ambush their prey?
