Remarkably Rare Footage of a Bigfin Magnapinna Squid Walking the Ocean Floor Upon Their 13 Foot Tentacles

The Minderoo-UWA Deep-Sea Research Centre partnered with Inkfish Expeditions to send a baited lander camera down 3300 meters (10,827 feet) into the Tonga Trench in the South Pacific Ocean where it caught the rare and remarkable sight of a Bigfin squid (Magnapinna) taking a walk along the ocean floor upon their remarkably long 4 meter (13 feet) tentacles.

While exploring the Tonga Trench at 3,300 meters, we captured footage of the elusive Magnapinna squid on our deep-sea lander cameras.

The mission also captured incredible footage of a whip-lash squid at 1000 meters (3,280 feet) shortly after seeing the Bigfin squid.

Hot on the tentacles of our ‘Magnapinna’ sighting this whip-lash squid also graced our cameras at 1000 metres deep in the Tonga Trench. This family of squid is found in most oceans, but the genus resides primarily in the tropical waters of the west Pacific Ocean.

via Boing Boing

Lori Dorn
Lori Dorn

Lori is a Laughing Squid Contributing Editor based in New York City who has been writing blog posts for over a decade. She also enjoys making jewelry, playing guitar, taking photos and mixing craft cocktails.