View Full Version : Our latest Architeuthis
Infusoria
Oct 23, '06, 3:59pm
We have another Giant Squid. Here are some pics...
Infusoria
Oct 23, '06, 4:03pm
Some more...
Architeuthoceras
Oct 23, '06, 6:49pm
8-)
Tintenfisch
Oct 23, '06, 7:13pm
I posted a few more pics here (http://www.tonmo.com/forums/showthread.php?p=81202#post81202). :smile:
:squidaut:
Is that rattail its last proverbial supper, or simply bycatch? Lampreys, rattails, tsssk...
Infusoria
Oct 24, '06, 5:48am
Is that rattail its last proverbial supper, or simply bycatch? Lampreys, rattails, tsssk...
The rattail in question (there were 3) turns out to be Caelorinchus maurifasciatus, about which virtaully nothing is known. As far as I know, all that is known about this species is the original paper describing it. I'll be doing gut-content analysis on them later this week. There was also a barracudina in there as well. These fish were bycatch that just got caught up with the squid in the trawl net.
chrono_war01
Oct 24, '06, 3:39pm
Is it just me? Or does the first picture of the second post have a green tinge to it?
Infusoria
Oct 24, '06, 4:21pm
Hmm I suppose it does have a greenish cast. Dunno why. Must be something greenish there...
Infusoria
Oct 24, '06, 4:35pm
These are pre-formalin...
joe chow
Dec 21, '06, 2:23am
This story today 12-21 on Taiwan news paper Chinatime
of a giant squid captured. check it out.
http://photo.chinatimes.com/photofile/newsweb/today.htm
story translate:
GIANT SEA MONSTER
a 6 meters length giant squid appeared at
TongGoang fish market(東港). Visiting
kindergarten children all amazed with mouth their wide open.
For the whole day, Skiper Mr. HongJehShan and machanic
HongShihCheng were telling their story of fighting the
sea monster.
joe chow
Steve O'Shea
Oct 20, '08, 4:57am
Another one arrived today; pics soon enough when we defrost it. It's been a few months since we saw one.:smile:
DWhatley
Oct 20, '08, 11:46pm
:bus:Soooo, I guess we get to compare Eric to the new squid in stead of a London bus?
Steve O'Shea
Oct 21, '08, 4:08am
That's the plan ...:mrgreen:
Gonna spoil him rotten!
Infusoria
Oct 21, '08, 5:49am
The rattail in question (there were 3) turns out to be Caelorinchus maurifasciatus, about which virtaully nothing is known. As far as I know, all that is known about this species is the original paper describing it. I'll be doing gut-content analysis on them later this week. There was also a barracudina in there as well. These fish were bycatch that just got caught up with the squid in the trawl net.
I was completely wrong with the rattail ID :oops:. It turned out to be Caelorinchus aspercephalus, but you knew that anyway...
Steve O'Shea
Oct 30, '08, 2:19am
Well we just picked it up, and now smell glorious! It's a big female, easily 250kg
Steve O'Shea
Oct 30, '08, 2:21am
.... and with a little tricky repositioning, got it in the tray and safely transported to work. It will defrost in the back of the van tonight .... and tomorrow .... and .....
DWhatley
Oct 30, '08, 11:41pm
Just don't leave the remains near an apartment air conditioning intake :sagrin:
Most of the inhabitants suffered permanent loss of smell following the "Mola mola incident", anyway, so I would say "beyond concern", now :wink:
Steve O'Shea
Oct 31, '08, 5:52pm
It smells 'fine'. It's a bit damaged, but I'll know more today. (It was still rather frozen yesterday, and it is obvious that its digestive gland ruptured when they picked it up off the beach and transported; there's a possibility that the head is also separated from the mantle.)
Here are just afew shots, a blow-by-blow account of what's involved getting a slippery, smelly mass from the back of the wagon into a tank in cramped quarters (there are two other fixing tanks to the immediate left of this squid .... both full) in a carpark with a few onlookers.
Formalin and cleaning goes on today.
Steve O'Shea
Oct 31, '08, 5:53pm
Tiz heavy and big, though the images don't really show this (we've been spoilt with Colossal).
Steve O'Shea
Oct 31, '08, 5:55pm
And finally, and a clean up .... (smelly!)
Steve O'Shea
Oct 31, '08, 6:00pm
You want to smell the office, truck and two carparks .....
Rather not.... The skin's off the mantle, as always, abrasion? Sea sun and sand? Or is that still a patch, all countershade and such?
Edit: backside of head, I see it now... Big eyes too.
Steve O'Shea
Oct 31, '08, 10:34pm
It was in a really bad way, two pieces, and the viscera was rotten. We disracded the mantle and kept thehead, although I'm inclined to lose the head at some point also (it just seemed like such a terrible waste).
The specimen was beach cast (ex trawler), the beaks had been removed .... a crying shame. Better luck with the next one. (That's Rebecca, who's come all the way from Chicago in the US of A to play just with squid with us for a few years ... her first Architeuthis.)
Infusoria
Nov 01, '08, 4:00am
Speaking of the sunfish, I can't remember if I posted any of the pics... Here's a few...
Matt
Infusoria
Nov 01, '08, 4:22am
Hi,
Here are some I took today... So we have a couple of close-ups, then one of the back of the truck post squid and pre-cleaning, and finally one really nice pic of Rebecca and Clara who were helping Steve out today.
Matt
Steve O'Shea
Nov 01, '08, 11:26pm
....... three hours of waterblasting later .....
DWhatley
Nov 02, '08, 2:34am
Matt,
I love the "fishing" shot.
Steve had posted some of cleaning the sunfish but not a shot that showed the size of the mess :smile:
What ever became of the latex mould.....
Anyway, were the eyes on this Architeuthis measured, by any chance? Looks like not, but just curious.
Infusoria
Nov 02, '08, 3:52am
What ever became of the latex mould.....
Anyway, were the eyes on this Architeuthis measured, by any chance? Looks like not, but just curious.
Dunno, and dunno, it was well munted. We have photographs of the eyes, so we could probably do something. I have some video too, of Steve dissecting the mantle. I'd post it but the file size requirement for .mov files is way too small. Can something be done about this?
Matt
Dunno, and dunno, it was well munted. We have photographs of the eyes, so we could probably do something. I have some video too, of Steve dissecting the mantle. I'd post it but the file size requirement for .mov files is way too small. Can something be done about this?
Matt
If you PM Tonmo, he can take care of big movies. I might be able to figure it out, but I've never done it before, so it's probably better to check with Tony.
- M
Dunno, and dunno, it was well munted. We have photographs of the eyes, so we could probably do something. I have some video too, of Steve dissecting the mantle. I'd post it but the file size requirement for .mov files is way too small. Can something be done about this?
Matt
That's great! When it comes to diameter, this A. dux looks like touching 200 mm... That's BIG.
Mythchamber
Jan 04, '09, 6:10am
How's that video coming???
I'm just seeing this now. We can definitely help. Might come down to providing an FTP account, but there are ways to get this done.
baldtankman
Jan 05, '09, 2:56pm
It was in a really bad way, two pieces, and the viscera was rotten. We disracded the mantle and kept thehead, although I'm inclined to lose the head at some point also (it just seemed like such a terrible waste).
The specimen was beach cast (ex trawler), the beaks had been removed .... a crying shame. Better luck with the next one. (That's Rebecca, who's come all the way from Chicago in the US of A to play just with squid with us for a few years ... her first Architeuthis.)
Your first is always memorable! Welcome to the madness..
Mythchamber
Jan 06, '09, 3:25am
I'm just seeing this now. We can definitely help. Might come down to providing an FTP account, but there are ways to get this done.
Awesome!