Nature & Environment

Giant squid washes up on New Zealand beach

By T.K. Randall
August 27, 2018

Image: Giant squid - Museum national d'histoire naturelle
Credit: Mgiganteus1 / CC BY-SA 4.0 (adapted) Despite its large size, the giant squid is a species that has long remained highly elusive.

A solitary animal that lives deep down in the depths of the ocean where it is rarely encountered, these gigantic sea creatures eke out an existence that scientists know very little about.

Finding one washed up on the shoreline, therefore, is typically the best way to see one up close.Brothers Daniel, Jack and Matthew Aplin had been out for a drive along Wellington's south coast recently when they came across the body of a huge squid sprawled out on the sand.

"My brother said 'what's that over there?' and pointed it out," said Daniel. "It was right next to the track so we pulled over and we were like: 'It's a big squid!'."

"[Later] we went back to it and got a tape measure out and it measured 4.2 meters long."



Source: New Zealand Herald

Tags: Giant Squid