Alien-like Squid Seen at Deep Drilling Site
A mile and a half (two and a half kilometers) underwater, this alien-like, long-armed, and–strangest of all–”elbowed” Magnapinna squid is seen in a still from a video clip recently obtained by National Geographic News.
Filmed by a Shell oil company ROV (remotely operated vehicle) on November 11, 2007, the squid was at the Perdido oil- and gas-development site in the Gulf of Mexico.
The video is evidence of how, as oil- and gas-industry ROVs dive deeper and stay down longer, they are yielding valuable footage of deep-sea animals.
Some biologists have even formed partnerships with oil companies, allowing scientists to share camera time on corporate ROVs–though critics worry about possible conflicts of interest.
news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/11/photogalleries/squid-magnapinna-photos
