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University of Florida researcher Roger Portell injects preservative into a 25-foot-long giant squid Monday night. Photo: Jeff Gage, University of Florida/Florida Museum of Natural History

 
Giant squid are creatures of the deep ocean. So it was quite a surprise when recreational fishermen spotted one floating on the surface some 12 miles off of Florida’s Jensen Beach on Sunday. They hauled the 25-foot-long dying invertebrate on to their 23-foot-long boat. “I thought we definitely need to bring it in, because no one’s going to believe us if we don’t,” said Robert Benz, who was fishing with friends Joey Asaro and Paul Peroulakis. “I didn’t want to leave it out there and just let the sharks eat it.”
 
On Monday scientists at the University of Florida’s preserved the squid, which died shortly after it was found. John Slapcinsky, the museum’s malacology collection manager, explained that giant squid reproduce just once in their lifetime, and then often become lethargic and die slowly. That’s probably what happened to this animal, as it was discovered barely alive near the surface. The finding offers a rare opportunity to learn more about the elusive creatures, which can grow to be 60 feet long, top 1,000 pounds, and have pigment cells on their white-and-red skin that allow them to rapidly change color, presumably for communication or camouflage.
 

Photo: Jeff Gage, University of Florida/Florida Museum of Natural History
 
“It’s so rare to get these specimens and they’re such deep-water animals that we don’t know much about how they live,” said Slapcinsky. “This specimen provides an excellent opportunity to learn things about these creatures we couldn’t find out any other way.”
 

The large suction cups on one of the two long, grasping tentacles. Photo: Jeff Gage, University of Florida/Florida Museum of Natural History
 

Close-up of the suction cups on one of the squid's eight arms. Photo: Jeff Gage, University of Florida/Florida Museum of Natural History
 
Scientists extracted genetic samples before injecting the squid’s body cavity with formalin and submerging the creature in a 10 percent solution of the preservative. The preservation process takes a couple of weeks, and once it’s completed researchers will determine the squid’s sex and age and compare it with other specimens. By studying the creature, scientists are hoping to better understand their range, diet, and how they reproduce. The genetic data could also help determine if there is more than one species of giant squid.
  
“We don’t really have a good handle on the biogeography of these critters, so this will add to that knowledge base,” said museum invertebrate paleontologist Roger Portell. “Because they are so rare, we have so few samples where we get a fresh specimen and can actually do genetic work.”
 

 
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