Squid vs. Deep-Sea Drill

[Clem]

Via YouTube, "Squid Attack, " ROV footage (set to music by Dire Straits!) concluding with images of a squid taking a keen and apparently fatal interest in a drill pipe. Location given as waters off NW Australia, depth 485m, on September 13, 2005. I'm assuming the dead and mangled squid held up by the deck crew at the very end is the one seen in the video. Cool squid images, and the Mola Mola is swell, too. After watching this footage, I remembered another image I'd seen a while ago, of a squid named Freddie embracing a core-sampling drill pipe at the Emperor Seamount (NW Pacific), 2600m depth, July 17 2001.

Apologies if this has been discussed already, but what's up with these squid going after deep-sea drills? And, any guesses as to what kind of squid is featured in the video?

Cheers,
Clem

Edit: More about Freddie the squid and the research vessel JOIDES Resolution below:

Ocean Drilling Program: Leg 197 Weeks 2-3

 

[Tintenfisch]

Cool Mola too!

 

[sorseress]

Speaking of molas, I saw some cool octopus and squid ones on EBAY. (The ones from the San Blas islands.)

 

[main_board]

That mola had beautiful patterning! Never seen that before. Looks like a big 'un too! I wonder how big that skate was too.

As far as the squid goes, I'd bet on Ommastrephes bartrami. I think we had similar footage earlier and thats what we agreed on, I think. The longitudinal ventral stripe and the "ventral protective membranes" (webbing) on arms 3 are pretty obvious. As the squid comes down to the pipe you can really see the webbing (and stripe again). Also, other members of the Ommastrephidae family demonstrate the hockey-stick posture shown in the video (see here, here).
Unfortunately, TolWeb doesn't have a page for O. bartrami yet, but here's the Ommastrephinae Images page where the picture links came from. Great video!

Cheers!

 

[OB]

Totalemente corretto!

 

[Clem]

Helo Main_Board,

So, we've got the Ommastrephid hockey-stick posture and the cranchiid cockatoo posture. What is this, jocks vs. artists?

Bartrami looks right, good call! Those are some cool Ommastrephids. Wonder what a giant variant would look like?

Cheers,
Clem

 

[main_board]

Well some O. bartrami do boarder on the 1 m ML qualification for giant status. According to Nesis there are three formally undescribed subspecies, North Atlantic, N. Pacific, and southern, which grow to 86 cm ML, 53 cm, and 65 cm, respectively. So they're close. And they've got Humbolts as cousins so you know there's some family disfunction there.

And I like the jocks vs. artists idea. I mean really you're pitting swift, strong, medium to large nektonic squids against sluggish, planktonic smallish squids that are just too creative in their appearance to be very functional. Bascially all the cranchiids got is Mesonychoteuthis, and they better be nice to Uncle Messie or they'll have bigger worries than some bullying ommastrephids.

Cheers!

 

[Tintenfisch]

Those are some cool Ommastrephids. Wonder what a giant variant would look like?

Possibly a little like D. gigas.

According to Nesis...

Should never have given you that copy.

 

[Clem]

Possibly a little like D. gigas.

Whoa, whoa there, careful. If you use the words giant and Dosidicus in a sentence you shall be visited by the TONMO fairy, and bopped on the head.

 

[cuttlegirl]

Whoa, whoa there, careful. If you use the words giant and Dosidicus in a sentence you shall be visited by the TONMO fairy, and bopped on the head.

"Little Squiddy Foo-foo I don't want to see you picking up the shrimp and bopping them on the head..."

 

[OB]

Indeed, it would be a collossal mistake...

 

[Clem]

"Little Squiddy Foo-foo I don't want to see you picking up the shrimp and bopping them on the head..."

 

[main_board]

Should never have given you that copy.

Are you kidding? I don't know what I'd do without the Bible!

Indeed, it would be a collossal mistake...

Kinda like your spelling?

 

[OB]

Kinda like your spelling?

Pun intended