The giant squid is real and scientifically known as Architeuthis. It is the largest invertebrate in the world . Studies show it can weigh up to 1.000 kilograms and measure up to 20 meters. A true zoological rarity , it possesses three hearts, a highly developed brain, and the largest eyes in the animal kingdom, up to 25 centimeters in diameter, adapted to the bioluminescent life of the abyssal trenches. Its muscles contain high concentrations of ammonia, making it inedible and allowing it to float with minimal energy expenditure. It expels luminous ink, has eight arms, and two tentacles surrounding its "parrot-beak" mouth—two powerful, beak-like jaws, a marvel of biological engineering, with which it kills and dismembers its prey.
Increased research has confirmed that this is neither a rare nor an uncommon animal, but finding one remains extremely difficult . They have been found in the stomachs of their natural predators, sperm whales. Some are also found stranded and lifeless, having been carried by currents, on beaches around the world. However, in Asturias they appear with a much higher frequency than in the rest of the world.
An Asturian organization, CEPESMA (Coordinator for the Study and Protection of Marine Species), founded in 1996 in Luarca, has been concerned in recent decades with safeguarding several of the bodies rescued from these large cephalopods.
Giant squids in Asturias
Experts believe that the coastline of the Principality of Asturias has ideal characteristics that favor the reproduction of this species. These include the submarine canyons that cut across the continental shelf and can extend up to 30 miles into the Cantabrian Sea. The Avilés Canyon , in particular, is an abyssal chasm located just 7 miles off the Asturian coast that reaches depths of almost 5.000 meters and contains one of the largest white coral reefs in all of Europe, according to scientists from the Spanish Institute of Oceanography. This canyon is a crucial ecosystem for the " peludines "—as Asturian sailors call the kraken. The Carrandi fishing grounds , located off the coast of Colunga, are situated within this canyon and are the area with the most sightings of this species, along with Kaicoura, south of New Zealand. Also nearby is Cachucho (36 kilometers off the coast of Ribadesella), another large marine cave, similar to Carrandi, and very rich in marine flora and fauna. It is along this entire coastal strip where the giant squid's main food source abounds: schools of blue whiting (as confirmed by the contents found in their stomachs).
When these enormous cephalopods venture to the surface in search of their favorite prey, they are exposed to trawlers and currents that carry them away from their habitat. In Asturian waters, more than 50 strandings have been recorded since the mid-20th century . Some of these specimens have been requested by European and North American centers. For example, in 2008, two giant squid were transported by military aircraft to Washington, D.C., to be displayed at the National Museum of Natural History. Both traveled in a specially designed, completely sealed container, built by CEPESMA, with a depressurization system containing 2.250 liters of water and formaldehyde.
The Giant Squid Museum
In 1997, the first giant squid arrived in Luarca, astonishing its inhabitants. The sailors nicknamed it "peludín" (little hairy one) due to the species' unique skin. The first Giant Squid Interpretation Center was then established on the Muelle Nuevo (New Wharf) of this fishing village. It opened in 2010 and served numerous scientific studies and purposes. Its exhibits included several krakens (a type of squid) that delighted the public. Finding an animal of this kind, intact and in perfect condition, was a very rare occurrence.
However, on February 2, 2014, an unprecedented storm devastated the facility. The high tide at six in the morning brought the most intense waves, which flooded and destroyed its first two floors. After being closed for eight years, the center recently reopened in a new location. The new museum now displays six giant squid , as well as 12 deep-sea species, 35 specimens of other large cephalopods, and six bones from some of these marine animals: two vertebrae, a jawbone, and part of the skulls of the species *Globicephala melas*, *Balaneoptera physalus*, and *Physeter macrocephalus*.
The museum project also aims to bring the overwhelming beauty of the Avilés Canyon closer to the public. To simulate the lack of light in this abyssal chasm, only the most essential lighting is used. Furthermore, ambient sound immerses us in a new sensory experience reminiscent of flowing water and the movements of giant squid. Scenography and interactive resources are added to facilitate learning and participation.
The exhibition hall also features a model of a giant squid, as well as a laboratory dedicated to its anatomy, with detailed information about its diet and growth. In addition, the documentary Project Kraken : In Search of the Giant Squid, filmed in the Carrandi Trench in 2003, plays continuously.
Part of the images from this documentary were used in a later audiovisual, from 2013, in which the Japanese chain NHK and the American Discovery Channel managed to record the giant squid for the first time in its habitat, about 15 kilometers east of the island. Chichijima Japanese, and 630 meters deep.
Hours of the Giant Squid Museum
Location: Calle Nicanor del Campo 35, Luarca
Phone: 985 64 00 83
Open from Wednesday to Sunday: 10:30 a.m. – 13:30 p.m.
Closed Monday and Tuesday.
exceptions:
October 30, 31 and November 1: 10:30 a.m. – 13:30 p.m. / 16:00 p.m. – 19:00 p.m.
From December 3 to 23: 10:30 a.m. – 13:30 p.m. / 16:00 p.m. – 19:00 p.m.
From December 24 to 27: CLOSED.
From December 28 to 30: 10:30 a.m. – 13:30 p.m. / 16:00 p.m. – 19:00 p.m.
December 31 and January 1: CLOSED.
Entry price:
General: €3,00 / pax
13 under, free.
Duration of the visit: 45 – 60 minutes approx.
dog-friendly space (pets must remain on a leash at all times).
Timetables/prices source: Giant Squid Museum.
Text: © Ramón Molleda for asturias.com
