A commercial fisherman based in Hilo Harbor in Hawaii recently caught a giant squid that he dubbed "one of the monsters of the deep". He caught the diamondback squid on February 1. It was the biggest squid that he had ever caught.
According to the Australian Museum, diamondback squids are large marine creatures with iconic diamond-shaped fin that extends along the whole length of the body. They are typically found in subtropical and tropical waters around the world, living near the surface of the open ocean either in pairs or in schools.
In the handout photo provided by the New Zealand Ministry of Fisheries, the world's first intact adult male colossal squid (Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni) is brought on board the New Zealand fishing long-line boat 'San Aspiring' on February 22, 2007, in the Ross Sea near Antarctica.
Breaking Hawaii State Record: Giant Squid Can Make 100 Plates of Calamari
Nikko Eterovich, the commercial fisherman at Hilo Harbor, and his crew caught the giant squid in Hawaii. He told local news outlet KHON2 that it was just another work night when they saw the squid, which they initially thought was a Manta ray.
But when it swam close to the boat, they realized it was indeed a giant squid known as Ika. He immediately grabbed the Ika pole to hook it up but failed on his first try, although it tore through the wing before swimming back to the depths. At that time, he was already sure that it was gone.
On the other hand, he did not lose hope of finding it. When the giant squid resurfaced back up, he immediately gaffed it. Eterovich successfully did a perfect headshot and caught the giant squid.
He added that it was the biggest squid he had ever caught, calling it "one of the monsters of the deep." The weight of the giant squid has also broken the Hawaii state record. The largest squid caught in Hawaii before it was only 28.5 pounds. It was caught in Kona.
Eterovich's squid weighs around 33.5 pounds and measures 4.8 feet long and 2.1 feet across. He is now in the process of sending the application to the Hawaii state record fishing for beating the previous record. Eterovich said that this size of a squid could make "about 100 plates of calamari". Photos of the giant squid have been shared on Facebook.
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Catching Giant Squids
Eterovich was not the first one to catch a diamondback squid. A trainee fisherman discovered a giant squid in the Maldives in 2019, Ceng News reported. Mohamed Jaleel caught the 42 pounds giant squid, making it one of the heaviest ever seen in history.
Also, a female giant squid was caught on camera in 2006 when it attacked the bait suspended beneath a Japanese research vessel off the coast of Ogasawara Islands in Japan. The squid measured around 24 feet (7 meters) and was the first one to get filmed alive. In 2012, researchers also captured a video of a living giant squid in its natural habitat for the first time.
Giant squids are the largest species of squid on the planet, which could grow up to 43 feet long and weigh nearly a ton. They can be found worldwide 3,000 feet below the surface. However, they are most common in the North Atlantic, North Pacific, and South Africa.
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Check out more news and information on the Giant Squid in Science Times.
