Squid’s Massive Ink Storm Clouds The Nautilus ROV

A squad of squid demonstrate, in spectacular fashion, their inking abilities in the lights of the Nautilus ROV.

This inking event took place in in open water as the crew of the Nautilus was being retrieved. It takes a minute to understand what is actually going on in the following clip.

At first it may look like they were chumming for squid. However, it was later pointed out that the squid were attracted to the ROV’s lights.

We may picture squid releasing black ink similar to the type in our writing instruments but as you can see in this video, squid ink comes in a variety of colors. The substance is produced in the squid’s ink sacs nestled between their gills.

This particular type of inking is known as a pseudomorph- a small cloud of ink resembling the shape of its producer meant to distract predators so the squid can escape.

H/T – YouTube Clip

I always thought a squid’s ink would be mostly of a liquid consistency. However, after seeing this, it is clear that it is can also be thick and stringy.

Watch the clip below to see what I mean.

Images Source: YouTube Clips