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00:00black
00:02although humans have known of the colossal squid, Misonicotheuthis hamiltoni since 1925
00:08this is the first confirmed live observation of one in its natural habitat
00:13researchers filmed the young colossal squid at nearly 600 meters depth near the South Sandwich Islands
00:19the young glass squid hovers steadily as its transparent body rotates slowly
00:24providing excellent views of the slender internal organs
00:27and large, highly reflective, iridescent eyes.
00:31Pairs of curved hooks are clearly visible
00:33on the clubs at the ends of the two long tentacles,
00:36and the clubs are long and slender,
00:38with relatively small hooks giving way to small suckers
00:40about two-thirds of the way along the club.
00:43Hooks are also present in the middle section
00:45of each of the eight arms,
00:47which is the defining feature for Misonica toothis
00:49and is the basis for the genus name,
00:51Miso meaning mid, Onico meaning hook,
00:54and toothis for squid.
00:56Large specimens of colossal squid
00:58do not resemble typical glass squids,
01:00but in this footage,
01:01their similarity to other family members is clear.
01:04The red coloration of the arms
01:06and large rust-red chromatophores on the mantle
01:08suggest that the animal can switch
01:10between transparent and opaque.
01:14Witnessing this first encounter,
01:16documented as the Schmidt Ocean Institute's
01:18remotely operated vehicle Sebastian
01:20descended through the water column,
01:22is truly a thrilling experience.
01:25I'm Dr. Kat Bolstad,
01:27from the AUT Lab for Cephalopod Ecology and Systematics
01:30at Auckland University of Technology.
01:32from the AUT Lab for Cephalopod Ecology
01:33from the AUT Lab for Cephalopod Ecology.