Rare Deep Sea Footage of a Dana Octopus Squid With Bioluminescent ‘Headlights’ on Its Two Arms [Video]

Scientists from the Minderoo-UWA Deep Sea Research Centre at The University of Western Australia captured exquisite and rare footage of a Dana octopus squid at more than a kilometer deep in the Samoan Passage of the Pacific Ocean.

A rare deep-sea squid has been captured on video at a depth of more than a kilometre underwater, by scientists from The University of Western Australia and Kelpie Geosciences in the UK.

The team was retrieving free-fall baited cameras that were dropped to as low as 5 kilometers (3.1 miles) deep when this gorgeous cephalopod with large bioluminescent photophores at the end of its two arms “attacked”. The squid evidently thought the cameras were prey.

The deep-sea hooked squid is one of the largest deep-water squid and is renowned for having two very large photophores on the end of two of its arms, which produce bright bioluminescent flashes to startle and disorientate prey when hunting. These are the largest known …