Giant squid seen in Gulf of Mexico for the first time ever

If you thought the giant squid was only something we see in the movies or suspicious YouTube videos – think "Mega octopus vs. Giant shark" – then we hate to tell you that you are wrong.

A very real giant squid has officially been caught on camera for the second time around ever, and the first time one has been filmed in the Gulf of Mexico. The creepy footage shows the giant sea-beast's tentacles curling through the pitch black darkness like something from a sci-fi film.

A group of researchers funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Office of Ocean Exploration and Research shot the video earlier this week, of a giant squid estimated to be as long at least 10 to 12 feet. The deep-sea device was filming in the Gulf of Mexico at a depth of 759 meters (2,490 feet).

But while we might think the squid is as scary as its movie counterparts, this too might be a wrong perception. Researchers Sönke Johnson and Edith Widder said:

Most importantly, we did not find a monster.

The giant squid is large and certainly unusual from our human perspective, but if the video shows anything of the animal’s character, it shows an animal surprised by its mistake, backing off after striking at something that at first must have seemed appealing but was obviously not food.

Needless to say the Internet was torn between the 'ecstatic'..

...and the 'absolutely terrified'

Sweet dreams!

HT HuffingtonPost

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