@mbari_news: Your Wednesday just got an upgrade: a new MBARI bigfin squid sighting just dropped! 🦑👀⁠ ⁠ During a recent expedition to study seamounts offshore of Central California, MBARI scientists and NOAA collaborators encountered a rarely seen deep-sea bigfin squid (Magnapinna sp.) approximately 3,277 meters (10,751 feet, or roughly two miles) underwater near Davidson Seamount.⁠ ⁠ This is only the second time MBARI researchers have encountered a bigfin squid. Only about 70 bigfin squid have ever been observed or collected.⁠ ⁠ The squid was hovering above the seafloor, undulating two large fins and trailing eight arms and two tentacles. Using a laser measuring system on MBARI’s ROV Doc Ricketts, the team estimated that the squid was about 1.25 meters (4.1 feet) long from the top of the body to the ends of the arms.⁠ ⁠ For MBARI Postdoctoral Fellow Olívia Soares Pereira, the moment was especially memorable. She recognized the squid almost immediately when the distinctive “elbows” appeared on the video feed—and promptly screamed “Magnapinna!”⁠ ⁠ Encounters like this are a reminder of how much remains unknown in the deep ocean. Every dive brings the possibility of seeing something new—and this time, researchers got an extraordinary look at one of the deep sea’s most elusive animals. #magnapinna #bigfinsquid #deepsea #oceanlife #Science

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Wednesday 02 September 2026 19:21:10 GMT