Giant Squid Attacked US Navy Ship, Damaged Sonar?

www.oldsaltblog.com...

USS Stein was underway when her anti-submarine sonar gear suddenly stopped working. On returning to port and putting the ship in a drydock, engineers observed many deep scratches in the rubber “NOFOUL” coating of the sonar dome. In some areas, the coating was described as being shredded, with rips up to four feet long. Large claws were left embedded at the bottom of most of the scratches.

He concluded it was a massive squid, owing to the structures of the teeth, but didn’t rule out something that hasn’t yet been found in the ocean. The only snag is that it has widely been reported that a squid with teeth like this would have to be in the region of 45 meters (150 feet) long, making it around half the length of the Statue of Liberty.

this story might have been around for a while, first time I've heard it
100 foot squid?
I don't think there's a limit as to how big squid can grow as they're aquatic.
(the blurb says 'teeth' but I think they're really claws on the tip of the tentacles)

I’ve seen some Big squid over the years offshore here.
40-50 feet at least.
All of us have.
A racing yacht had one on it’s hull for awhile off the Azores.
They got pictures through the glass inspection ports on the hull.
It was massive!




a reply to: ElGoobero

a reply to: ElGoobero

Maybe it's the real Kraken.

a reply to: ElGoobero

No, most of the suckers on the arms have a kind of claw ring in them. They are not on the tips of the arms.

There are old reports from whaling vessels of scars on whales from squid attacks that were the size of dinner plates.

a reply to: ElGoobero

futurism.com...

The giant squid has a sophisticated nervous system and complex brain, attracting great interest from scientists. It also has the largest eyes of any living creature, except its bigger relative, the colossal squid. These eyes can be up to at least 27 cm (11 in) in diameter, with a 9 cm (3.5 in) pupil. These large eyes can better detect light, which is scarce in deep water. This is important as the squid are attracted to bioluminescent fish in order to feed. Typically, the squid are attracted to the lights of jellyfish; however, this is not to eat the jellyfish itself (as they would not make much of a meal for these huge creatures). Instead, the squid attack and eat the large creatures trying to eat the jellyfish. In some cases, scientists assert that the bioluminescence acts as a distress call from the jellyfish, a last ditch effort to attract an even larger predator (the squid) to eat what is trying to eat it.

The Colossal Squid:
Mesonychoteuthis, or the colossal squid, is even bigger than Architeuthis. This denizen of the deep is one of the largest living organisms on the globe. It is certainly is the largest known invertebrate. Current estimates put its maximum size at 12–14 m (39–46 ft), and it is also the largest squid by mass. It sometimes goes by the name of Antarctic or Giant Cranch squid, but little is known of it besides a few dead specimens (mostly, they are already partially eaten). It differentiates from the giant squid by having a much larger and longer mantle (body) and smaller tentacles.

image credit: New Zealand Ministry of Fisheries, shown here is the world's first intact adult male colossal squid.
Its eyes are slightly bigger (the biggest in the animal kingdom at 12 inches in diameter). Because of its location in the cold waters in Antarctica, and also because of its larger mass, this squid ambushes instead of hunts. This makes sense, as it would take a lot of energy for the squid to roam about looking for food.

One primary (and sinister) difference between these two abyssal behemoths is their weaponry. The colossal squids arms, unlike the giant squid's arms and tentacles (which only have suckers lined with small chitin teeth), are equipped with large, sharp hooks that actually swivel. These beasts also have other hooks that are shaped like three-pointed daggers.

The ocean deep still harbors fear-inspiring monsters. Luckily, human interaction with them is few and far between. As scary they are, they are incredibly fascinating, and make us wonder what else could be lurking in the cold dark depths. Scientists still have a lot to learn about these creatures, and still have many more secrets to unlock on our beautiful planet Earth.

Old reports?????












reply to: beyondknowledge

Here’s a good pic of a Sperm Whale that just finished battling a Giant Squid.



A member of it’s pod will pluck the tentacle off.

I love whales!!!
We saw multiple thousands of many types of Whales over the years.

Humpback and Minke Whales would follow us around feasting on Scallop guts and fish all the time.

Me and my buddy Buster cut a radar reflector and downline of the Starboard (right) flipper of a Humpback many years ago.
She just laid too but when she winched from pain, that could hurt.
I got two feet from here eye and we just stared at each other.

She followed us for a few day breaching over and over out of what I believe was joy.
I posted a story here about it but it was one of the first I wrote……badly btw.

So Cool……!

Buster got lost overboard some years later during a strong gale of wind.





da pirate 😎






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a reply to: PiratesCut

Pics or it didnt happen

a reply to: ElGoobero youtu.be...

Squids have claws, huh.. I learned something new today, and a quick google search tells me that if those are from a squid it most have been massive.

can't find anything to support it, but back in the day when i was a young highly motivated Rompin Stompin Ass Kickin Marine stationed on a couple of different bases, there were rumors of sucker marks found on some subs bows.

there is also a report with video of although not a giant squid, their calling it a jumbo squid attacking a green peace submersible. so i'd say it safe to say there are probably true stories out there.

Also these creatures have the biggest eyes of any animal alive around 10-12".

Imagine scuba diving and you turn around and one of these things is face to face with you looking right at you, what a nightmare.

I Love Calamari just not that Big.
a reply to: ElGoobero

originally posted by: bluesman462002
I Love Calamari just not that Big.
a reply to: ElGoobero

When the calamaro is big enough for you to be the appetizer, it is too big.