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A colossal squid has been filmed in its natural environment for the first time since the species was discovered 100 years ago. The 30cm-long (11.8in) juvenile was caught on camera at a depth of 600m (1,968ft), near the South Sandwich Islands in the south Atlantic Ocean. A team of scientists, led by a University of Essex academic, recorded the footage in March during a 35-day quest to find new marine life. Experts believe colossal squid can grow up to 7m (23ft) in length and weigh up to 500kg (1,100lb) - making them the heaviest invertebrate on the planet.

First confirmed live observation of the colossal squid, Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni, in its natural habitat First confirmed live observation of the colossal squid, Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni, in its natural habitat Image credit: ROV SuBastian / Schmidt Ocean Institute Behold: a live colossal squid in all its glory. After a century of searching, the extremely elusive cephalopod has been caught on camera alive in its natural habitat for the first time (and, for once, not inside the belly of a whale or washed up dead on a beach). The juvenile squid was filmed on March 9 at a depth of 600 meters (1,968...

Colossal squid hooked with rings the size of tractor tyres   February 22, 2007 - 3:30PM     New Zealand fishermen in the Ross Sea have caught what's thought to be the largest squid ever found.Its estimated weight is about 450 kilograms.The species is known as the colossal squid, shorter but much heavier than the better known giant squid.It was hauled to the surface while munching on one of its favourite foods, a Patagonian toothfish which the fishermen had hooked on a longline.Dr Steve O'Shea, from the Auckland University of Technology, says the previous largest find weighed 300 kilograms.He...

Colossal squid a formidable customer 03.04.2003 - By PAULA OLIVER It has eyes as big as dinner plates, swivelling, razor-sharp hooks and a taste for anything that swims by. A colossal squid, a creature previously thought to lurk only deep in the world's coldest oceans, has been caught on the surface of the Ross Sea by a group of fishermen. The exact point where the sea monster was found is being kept secret, but it appears that the fishermen were pulling in their catch when they noticed that something large was attacking the fish. "They knew they were on to...