Ika, anyone?

[OB]

Whilst trawling the web, I came accross this interesting looking pic http://ma-sami.cocolog-nifty.com/sake/ika-2.jpg which actually should be hidden behind some hyperlink on these very pages...

There's an ika-1 and 3 as well, showing a fairly large squid, (I guess Architeuthis sp.) on some japanese fish market, with a remarkably sturdy mantle by the looks of it. Size is greatly exaggerated due to the camera angle chosen, but still...

Can anyone forward me to the correct thread, for this one? many thanks in advance,

OB

PS: closer inspection reveals "ridges" on the arms, would that favour identification as Architeuthis?

 

[Graeme]

Erm... I dunno, but it looks kinda fake. Maybe not, but there's just something odd about that still. Don't cephalopods completely flatten out of water 'cause there's no water to keep it from just folding in on itself? That looks like it's doing a good job of keeping its shape there. I could be mistaken though.

Graeme

 

[CapnNemo]

Hello again chaps

I'm certain this has been discussed somewhere else here in the forums (fora?), but dashed if I can find where and double-dashed if I can remember the conclusion.

Anyone?

 

[Clem]

Hello Folks,

There was a discussion about those odd Japanese video stills in the "Living Architeuthis Photos" thread a few years back; my connection is slow today, so I'm not equipped to wade through all those pages to find the original post.

When I posted those pics, I too doubted that they were the real deal; their presence on a page referencing Japanese pop culture made me wonder if the squid wasn't a commercial prop of some kind, and the mantle looked too cyclindrical, more so than you'd expect from a dead Architeuthis. On the other hand, the level of detail was very convincing (proper eye shape, keels on the arms, etc.). What clinched it for me were the obvious signs of frost on the arms and body and the apparent rigidity of some of the arms, indicating that the animal was caught/found and flash frozen. It looks like the video was made as the squid was being thawed out (water poured over it).

Steve was of the opinion that it looked real, and it sure looks like Architeuthis. I'd bet that Tsunemi Kubodera knows all about it. Attention to his work should eventually yield a wealth of previously undisclosed data and images about big Japanese teuthids.

Cheers,
Clem

 

[chrono_war01]

I wonder what Steve O has to say about a large squid lying around in the market?

 

[Clem]

Okay, buried deep in the "Living Architeuthis" thread:

Huge, Enigmatic Squid in Japanese Market(?)

Chrono, here's what Steve had to say about this squid:

I'd say those pics were the real deal; too much post-mortem detail (they'd have done a better job if they'd wanted to render it more life like).

Still, no solid word on whether or not it's Architeuthis. Sure looks like it.

I should take a minute here to encourage all newcomers and recently "de-lurked" folks at TONMO to go through the established threads relating to the giant squid and colossal squid. There's a ton of great information to be mined (I could stand a refresher course, myself), and there may well be more big news coming.

Cheers,
Clem

 

[Phil]

Absolutely, I wonder if it's worth making up a top 10 list of recommended threads for new visitors, especially during this period of heavy traffic.

Might take a while, but it would be worth it.

 

[OB]

As a follow up to the above, and linking to the Japanese fish market mystery squid: if you look at another news item, if I'm not mistaken previously posted on these very pages in 2004(?), the original source of which is found at

http://www.falkland-malvinas.com/Detalle.asp?NUM=3536

You'll notice the effect that freezing has on mantle shape preservation, even in large squid

The Article quotes 2,7 meters mantle length, which would in many ways astound me... the photograph seems to suggest that length in total for the frozen specimen, tentacles all curled up, when compared for size to the two toddlers standing next to it...

PS: I noticed on another forum, can't quite recall which, some photoshop afficianados discrediting the jfmms, mistaking the leeching ink for a badly done shadow effect as "the dead give away" for manipulation... it takes all sorts