The real story behind this squid video

This Vine has been viewed nearly six million times in the five days since it was posted by Greenpeace as part of its [campaign to protect sea canyons.]1

The actual footage is from a deep dive in 2007 in the Bering Sea, where Greenpeace was exploring canyons threatening by industrial fishing. While underwater the submarine was attacked by two giant Humboldt squids, which can grow up to 1.9m long and are pretty terrifying.

As Dr David Guggenheim, a marine biologist on the trip, explained at the time, the behaviour was pretty unusual. "In all the years I’ve been scuba diving, I’ve never been attacked by a sea creature," he wrote.

As I descended into Zhemchug Canyon yesterday past 1,300 feet yesterday, I reported to Mike at the navigation station on Esperanza that I had entered the 'squid layer'. My external lights were on, as were Michelle’s in the other sub about 100 feet below me, so that we could maintain visual contact during the dive, a safety precaution at these depths.

But to a squid, my lights meant a meal, and they pursued me with intent to consume. Ink was everywhere, they clung to the lights with their tentacles and attacked with their beaks. They torpedoed in all directions around me, leaving black clouds of ink hanging in their paths. So much ink accumulated it appeared that my lights were smoking.

• Dr David Guggenheim

H/TIFScience

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