- A diver has captured extraordinary footage of a giant squid swimming near the water surface in a Japanese harbor.
- One diver responded to the unusual event by jumping into the water with the squid.
- At 3.7 meters, the Toyama squid may have been a juvenile. Giant squid are believed to reach a length of up to 13 meters (43 feet).
A diver has captured extraordinary footage of a giant squid swimming near the water surface in a Japanese harbor, reports CNN.
According to a manager at the Mizuhashi Fisherina marina in Toyama Bay, a 3.7-meter-long (12 foot) giant squid was sighted swimming under some boats on the morning of December 24.
“It was the first time that we saw a live giant squid here, where water depth is only about 2.5 to 3 meters,” Tatsuya Wakasugi, a manager at the marina, was quoted as saying by The Wall Street Journal.
Wakasugi said that around a dozen giant squid have gotten caught in nets since the beginning of the year. Giant squid normally live at depths exceeding 650 meters (2,000 feet), making sighting of live individuals rare.
One diver responded to the unusual event by jumping into the water with the squid.
Akinobu Kimura, owner of Diving Shop Kaiyu, filmed the creature.
“My curiosity was way bigger than fear, so I jumped into the water and go close to it,” Kimura told CNN.
“This squid was not damaged and looked lively, spurting ink and trying to entangle his tentacles around me. I guided the squid toward… the ocean, several hundred meters from the area it was found in, and it disappeared into the deep sea.”
At 3.7 meters, the Toyama squid may have been a juvenile. Giant squid are believed to reach a length of up to 13 meters (43 feet).
