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Rare Squid Could Be Largest Ever Hooked
Massive Catch Has Rings the Size of Truck Tires
By RAY LILLEY
AP
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (Feb. 22) - A fishing crew has caught a
colossal squid that could weigh a half-ton and prove to be the biggest
specimen ever landed, a fisheries official said Thursday.

The fishermen were catching Patagonian toothfish, sold under the name
Chilean sea bass, south of New Zealand "and the squid was eating a
hooked toothfish when it was hauled from the deep," Anderton said.

The fishing crew and a fisheries official on board their ship
estimated the length and weight of the squid: Detailed, official
measurements have not been made. The date when the colossus was caught
also was not disclosed.

Calamari the Size of a Tractor Tire

Colossal squid, known by the scientific name Mesonychoteuthis
hamiltoni, are estimated to grow up to 46 feet long and have long been
one of the most mysterious creatures of the deep ocean.

If original estimates are correct, the squid would be 330 pounds
heavier than the next biggest specimen ever found.

"I can assure you that this is going to draw phenomenal interest. It
is truly amazing," said Dr. Steve O'Shea, a squid expert at the
Auckland University of Technology. If calamari rings were made from
the squid they would be the size of tractor tires, he added.

Colossal squid can descend to 6,500 feet and are extremely active,
aggressive hunters, he said.

frozen squid will be transported to New Zealand's national museum, Te
Papa, in the capital, Wellington, to be preserved for scientific
study.

Marine scientists "will be very interested in this amazing creature as
it adds immeasurably to our understanding of the marine environment,"
Anderton said.

Colossal squid are found in Antarctic waters and are not related to
giant squid found round the coast of New Zealand. Giant squid grow up
to 39 feet long, but are not as heavy as colossal squid.