A giant squid ( Architeuthis dux ) off Reunion Island, western Indian Ocean: the greatest giant ever?

• Published in: Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom
• Main Authors: Romanov, Evgeny V., Jaquemet, Sébastien, puetz, lara
• Other Authors: ARDA CAP RUN, Ecologie marine tropicale dans les Océans Pacifique et Indien (ENTROPIE Réunion ), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université de La Réunion (UR)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD), University of Copenhagen = Københavns Universitet (KU)
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2018
• Subjects: Cephalopod habitat; distribution records; lower rostral length; dorsal mantle length; total length; [SDV.BID]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Biodiversity; Indian; DML
• Online Access: https://hal.univ-reunion.fr/hal-02273506; https://doi.org/10.1017/S0025315417001588

International audience A freshly dead individual of the giant squid Architeuthis dux, presumably mutilated by a predator of bigger or comparable size, is reported from the south-western Indian Ocean in proximity to Reunion Island. The species was identified from body and beak morphology and validated genetically. The dorsal mantle length (DML) estimated from beak measurements (lower rostral length, LRL) varied between 2153 and 3060 mm depending on the allometric equation used. The Architeuthis dux individual described here is the biggest giant squid ever reported for the region.