ArticleBody:Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute researchers in California believe they have discovered a new deep-sea squid species thanks to one cephalopod mother’s surprisingly large egg brood.
Many species of octopuses are known to brood their eggs until they hatch, but that isn’t the case for squids. Instead, the ocean dwellers usually deposit egg clusters on the seafloor or disperse them to drift along water columns until they hatch. But when a squid species does brood, it’s a fatal endeavor. “Brooding takes a lot out of a mother squid.
Most of these eggs are also incredibly small, with a Gonatus squid’s measuring just 6mm in diameter. The squid seen in the submersible video, however, oversaw eggs roughly double that size . She also brooded far fewer than its potential relatives—around 30-40 eggs versus as many as 3,000 seen in other Gonatus squids. Brooding patterns are even more impressive considering gestation can take as long as 52 months for some squids.