The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-11-11
THIRD
GIANTS AMONG DEVIL FISH.
HUGE SPECIMENS WITH 30 FOOT
ARMS SOMETIMES FOUND.

Nseful 10 amer lean r1Snerfnen- A DELI
cacy in the Orient. Though Avoided
Here-A veritable wOlf OF the Sea.
In Fulton Market the other day the at
tention OF a passerby was attracted to a
large bowl on a fish stand, in which APP
peared to be a quivering mass Of jelly.
The dealer. noticing his curious look. stepped
over, and smilingly remarked:
Never saw one OF those animals before.
did your
Upon receiving a reply in the negative
ne tipped over the bowl and dumped the
curious creature out upon the counter,
-emarking as he did so:
Hes not very pretty. but he's mighty
useful to the American fisherman all the
same
The dealer certainly spoke truly when
he declared the thing was not pretty.
Imagine an animal shaped like a big bodied
vase, with a bunch OF stems sticking out OF
.he top, and a body so soft that IL shook
and quivered like a cake Of jelly, and with
a pair OF large, protruding and very brilliant
eyes, and a good picture is presented Of the
creature as it lay on the counter.
Although he doesn't look much like It.
said the dealer, yet the scientists tell US
that the squid, or cutie fish. as he Ia fire.
ouently called, telongs to the mollusks.
You will probably recognize him best
under the name Of devil fish.
1t Is really a very common animal on
this coast, being especially abundant in.
Long Island Sound. But few are sold
in the fish markets Of this country, and these
mainly to Italians and Chinese, despite
the fact that In many places in Europe
and In Oriental countries it is considered
q choice dellcacy. The I~chthyophagus
Club Of this city tried to introduce it as a
food product by serving il at one OF its
annual dinners some years ago, but with
out much success.
TIC the fishermen its chief importance
Ia "a bait for Goldfish. As soon as the sauid
strike the cod banks on their northward
migration it is useless TO bait the hooks
with anything but squid, as the cod will
then no attention to herring, clam
or any other choice bait but squid.
The animal has ten tentacles, or arms,
two Of which are much larger than the
others. All Of these arms are covered with
cupshaped suckers, which aid in holding
its prey. The long arms are so slender
that they are generally coiled up in a spiral
cone in two pockets, one on each side just
below the yes. n are p~rotruded only
when the animal has need OF them.
While the animal has only two teeth
they are able to infiict terrible wounds, and
these in connection with its wonderfully
powerful prehensile arms make il veritable
wolf OF the sea.
Mature has provided the animal with a
very effective means for escaping from its
enemies in the ink sack with which each
squid 10 equipped. When attacked the
animal discharges this inky fluid, discoloring
the water. and under v Of the inky
cloud the squid darts backward and escapes.
Tho sepla color Of the artists comes from
this ink.
The squid is the only animal which is
able. like man, to blush. Its body Is ex-
ceedingly beautiful. being tinted and spotted
with all the colors Of the rainbow.
Like man, when excited the animal
will change color several times in a very
few minutes, resuming its normal color
when the exciting cause has passed away.
Another evidence of excitement in the
squid is the sudden appearance all over it's
body Of little excrescences resembling
warts which disappear again when the
animal resumes its normal state.
The animal 10 exceedingly active, dart
ing with great velocity backward or in any
other direction.
"In attacking young mackerel, its favor
tie food, the squid suddenly darts backward
among the fish and as suddenly turns OBJ
rquely to the right or left and seizes a fish,
which it almost instantly kills by a bite in
the back Of the neck with its sharp beaks.
The bite Is always made in the same place,
cutting out a triangular piece Of flesh,
and Is deep enough TO penetrate to the
spinal cord.
Sometimes, after making several unsuc-
cessful attempts, a squid will suddenly drop
10 the bottom and resting upon the sand
change its color TO that OF the sand so per-
fectly az to be almost invisible. In this
position il will wait until the fishes come
hack and when they are swimming close
10 or over it the long arms are shot out
like lightning and grasping a fish are
brought back to the squads mouth almost
a. speedily as they were extended.
Ordinarily when swimming they are
thickly spotted with red and brown, but
when darling among the mackerel they APP
seem 10 have learned that the shallow water
IL the safest place for them and will hug
the shore as closely as possible, so that in
pursuing them many OF the squid become
stranded and perish by hundreds.
The squid often gets stranded on the
beach on moonlight nights, especially
those OF full moon. This Is supposed TO be
because they are attracted by the bright
light and gaze at it until the receding tide
leaves them high and dry.
1T wasn't 90 many years ago that the
very existence Of large squid was utterly
dishelieved in by most naturalists. Now
we know better.
The Smithsonian Institution has the
leak OF a squid which was taken from a
specimen found floating at the surface on
LDs Grand banks III october, 1871, BY Capt.
Campbell Of the fishing schooner b. d.
Haskins of Gloucester, Mass. The body
= said to have measured fifteen feet in length
and four feet eight inches In circumference.
Tho arms were nine or ten feet long and
twenty-five inches in circumference: tt
whole animal was estimated TO weigh 1000
pounds.
a large squid attacked two men who
we're in a sm all boat in Conception Bay,
Newfoundland, October ~, 1873. Two OF
~ arms, which II threw across the boat,
we're cut of with a Ratchet and brought
ashore, and a portion measuring nineteen
act wa preserved. The total length OF
tho arm was estimated at from thirty-one
to thiTty-five feet.