Colossal Squid (Mesonychoteuthis) Pictures

Tintenfisch said:
... had to revise our previous measurement of the LRL (it's 37 mm), and confirmed that Arms IV are definitely, and markedly, the shortest, which has some interesting implications for Messie's natural posture.
Hello Kat,

Does that mean the drawing from Voss is inaccurate? Or just the caption? It depicts the 1st arm pair as being the shortest. The drawing was done from a juvenile specimen, and I don't suppose the arm proportions would change that dramatically during the maturation process...would they?

I'm guessing your confirmation of the arm length strengthens the conjecture that Messie's arms are oriented vertically?

Cheers,
Clem

ps: If you aren't careful, your visage may replace the double-decker bus as a standard measure for giant teuthids. "Lower rostral length=.25ttf, ML=11ttf..." :wink:
 
can you go into detail at all about the huge stink in the press and politics? no one will talk to you about it because you are opposed to bottom trawling and overfishing, or what?
 
Clem said:
Does that mean the drawing from Voss is inaccurate? Or just the caption? It depicts the 1st arm pair as being the shortest. The drawing was done from a juvenile specimen, and I don't suppose the arm proportions would change that dramatically during the maturation process...would they?

Well! I went back to check this (doubted very much that Voss would be wrong) - the original drawing is from McSweeny 1970. He gives the raw measures for his four specimens, and for each the arm formula is definitely IV>III>II>I. But as I was looking at the illustration (available here on the Tree of Life), I noticed that the arms on his specimens are pretty much developed to just past the hook series (which is nearly complete) on each arm. In both the specimens we examined, the number of suckers proximal to the hooks increases on each arm (IV>III>II>I), which is also true for McSweeny's specimens (or at least the one illustrated). Which means that if the hook series on all arms are nearly complete by that size (59-86mm ML), Arms IV have to be longest because they have 20-22 proximal suckers (as well as more hooks in the mid-arm series than the other arms), whereas the other arms mostly have 14-18. And since Arms IV in both larger specimens have fewer distal suckers than any other arm, and are markedly shorter, yes, there has to be a change in the proportions as the animal matures.

Clem said:
If you aren't careful, your visage may replace the double-decker bus as a standard measure for giant teuthids. "Lower rostral length=.25ttf, ML=11ttf..." :wink:

LOL. But we definitely don't want that!!
 
:thumbsup:

... and Kat, not sure whether you realise this yet (prolly do), but you've just developed a new theory in your last post ....

Once you've defrosted (she's currently frozen to the heater) I'll come chat.
 
Tintenfisch said:
..... Arms IV have to be longest because they have 20-22 proximal suckers (as well as more hooks in the mid-arm series than the other arms), whereas the other arms mostly have 14-18. And since Arms IV in both larger specimens have fewer distal suckers than any other arm, and are markedly shorter, yes, there has to be a change in the proportions as the animal matures.

Hey K, just what were the ASC's for the 4 arms on the large specimen of 2003?
 
Arm I length (R / L): 1040 / 1018
Proximal suckers: 15 / 14
Hooks: 7 / 14
Distal suckers: 136 / 139
Arm II length (R / L): 1061 / 1095
Proximal suckers: 15 / 14
Hooks: 10 / 9
Distal suckers: 136 / 136
Arm III length (R / L): 1152 / 1046
Proximal suckers: 18 / 18
Hooks: 11 / 10
Distal suckers: 138 / 136
Arm IV length (R/L): 870 / 852
Proximal suckers: 22 / 22
Hooks: 19 / 19
Distal suckers: 107 / 98
 
Sneak preview! Coming soon (well, depends on the reviewers, really) to a journal near you... :wink:

ABSTRACT

The ‘colossal’ cranchiid squid Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni Robson is believed to attain the largest size of any Recent cephalopod. However, due to lack of material, and the fragmentary, partially digested or juvenile nature of almost every hitherto reported specimen, the biology and morphology of this species have remained poorly known. Herein several new specimens are described, including a recently captured subadult female from the Ross Sea (Antarctica), an immature female from Macquarie Island (southern Tasman Sea), severed tentacles recovered from Antarctic Toothfish long-lines (Antarctica), and additional beaks recovered from stomach contents of Antarctic Toothfish, and sperm whales stranded on the West Coast near Auckland. This novel material enables a redescription of this species based on subadult characteristics and character states, and confirms its status as the largest of Recent cephalopod taxa. The diet and known ecology of Mesonychoteuthis are also reviewed and discussed, with comments on its role in the diet of sperm whales and other predators in the Antarctic.
 
Is there any likelihood of this paper (which I'd dearly love to read) being published somewhere on the web, or is it confined to journals that I am, unfortunately, not likely to be able to get my hands on very easily?
 

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