Scientists previously captured rare footage of a giant squid. Now,关键字2 they've filmed another huge squid species — the colossal squid.

The first specimens of the colossal squid (Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni) were formally described by biologists a century ago, in 1925. These deep sea dwellers, which live exclusively in Antarctic waters, are rarely seen, so they're largely mysterious. But the Schmidt Ocean Institute, a well-traveled ocean exploration group, has used a high-tech robot to film the first-ever confirmed footage of colossal squid in its natural and remote marine environs.

"It’s exciting to see the first in situ footage of a juvenile colossal and humbling to think that they have no idea that humans exist," Kat Bolstad, a cephalopod expert at the Auckland University of Technology who helped verify the footage, said in a statement. "For 100 years, we have mainly encountered them as prey remains in whale and seabird stomachs and as predators of harvested toothfish."

---

You May Also Like

---

---

"This is honestly one of the most exciting observations we've had in my time researching deep sea cephalopods," Bolstad added during a press conference on April 15.

SEE ALSO: A dominant shark lurks in the deep, dark ocean. Meet the sixgill.

The observed colossal squid seen below is quite young and not nearly fully grown, at about a foot long. But mature individuals grow to around 23 feet long (though some individuals could be larger), weigh in at over 1,100 pounds (which makes them both the heaviest squid and invertebrate), and have the largest eyes of any animal (at some 10.5 inches across, making them soccer-ball size).

Mashable Light Speed Want more out-of-this world tech, space and science stories? Sign up for Mashable's weekly Light Speed newsletter. By clicking Sign Me Up, you confirm you are 16+ and agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Thanks for signing up!

The Schmidt Ocean Institute's ROV SuBastian — a robot fitted with a slew of scientific instruments and capable of descending down to 14,763 feet, or 4,500 meters — filmed the squid on March 9 off the South Sandwich Islands in the Atlantic Ocean. The squid was swimming at some 1,968 feet, or 600 meters, beneath the surface.

The Schmidt Ocean Institute's remotely operated vehicle SuBastian. Credit: Alex Ingle / Schmidt Ocean Institute

This long-sought footage was ROV SuBastian's third time capturing first-ever confirmed footage of a squid species in their natural ocean habitat. (The others include Spirula spirula, or Ram’s Horn Squid, in 2020, and the Promachoteuthis.)

---

Related Stories

---

• Scientists discover ancient shark swimming in a really strange place
• NASA dropped a new report. It's a wake-up call.
• The best telescopes for gazing at stars and solar eclipses in 2024
• Amazing creature found 27,000 feet under the sea. Here's how it survives.
• There's a fascinating new clue to the giant megalodon's extinction

Dropping such robots into the depths regularly reveals rare or unprecedented footage. "We always discover stuff when we go out into the deep sea. You're always finding things that you haven't seen before," Derek Sowers, an expedition lead for NOAA Ocean Exploration, previously told Mashable.

Scientists want to shine a light — literally and figuratively — on what's down there. The implications of knowing are incalculable, particularly as deep sea mineral prospectors prepare to run tank-like industrial equipment across parts of the seafloor. Biologists emphasize that rare biodiversity and marine habitats ought to be protected. What's more, research expeditions have found that ocean life carries great potential for novel medicines. "Systematic searches for new drugs have shown that marine invertebrates produce more antibiotic, anti-cancer, and anti-inflammatory substances than any group of terrestrial organisms," notes the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

"There's life down there that has the potential to provide and has provided us with medicines," Jyotika Virmani, an oceanographer and executive director of the Schmidt Ocean Institute, told Mashable last year.

(责任编辑：野狐湾)