Auckland scientist Steve O’Shea is attempting to break his own record of keeping a giant squid from 300m below sea level alive for 150 days – the experiment could teach scientists more about squid life, about which little is known.
He is raising broad squid, which he raised before for up to 180 days, and has set up a squidcam – a moving webcam – for the public to watch their development. He hopes that it will bring him one step closer to his goal of raising giant squid,
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“”I’ve been told in the past that what I’m trying to do is basically impossible, and I’m told that I’m just going to spend an eternity in trying to prove them wrong.
“”We are proving that the impossible is possible.”
“Sea squid are voracious hunters, eating prey one to one and a half times their size. In its short life, a squid eats 10 different prey types and eats only live food for the first 120 days of its life.
“”There are 86 species of squid in New Zealand waters and almost nothing is known about their life history, longevity or biology,” Dr O’Shea said.”