Yes, Squid Can Fly

squidzone.ca

No, this is not a trick. The picture on the right is of an actual squid in flight.

Anecdotal accounts of squid flight have been circulating for years, but only in the last year has actual photographic evidence been taken.

Filling its soft, muscular body with water, the squid contracts rapidly and sends a sharp jet of water out of a tube at the base of its head. Like an underwater jet engine, this thrust propels the squid forcefully from the water. Once airborne, this remarkable animal flares out its tentacles for balance and begins vigorously flapping its fins.

Scientists have observed an eight inch Caribbean reef squid (Sepioteuthis sepioidea) travel a distance of more than thirty feet. That's fifty times the animal's body length.

Its not just an isolated phenomenon either. Dozens of species are suspected of flight.

How cool is that? I anxiously await the first time a giant squid takes to the air and snatches up a passing plane.