Resources
Squid and octopus of all kinds are popular animals! There are lots of great resources if you want to find out more about them.
If you're now a squid fan, we'll point you to some cephalopod communities that you might like to join.
Everything Squid
Find all you need to know about squid below
Te Papa colossal squid resources
Want a picture of a colossal squid? Look here!
Colour illustration (pdf, 1.6 mB)
Dorsal view (pdf, 1.3 mB)
Lateral view (pdf, 1.5 mB)
Parts to label (pdf, 132 kB)- Teachers, take a look at this self-guided learning resource.
Check out Te Papa's blog for the latest on the colossal squid and to connect with other squid fans.
Squid and octopus news —
the site for cephalopod fans
The Octopus News Magazine Online, known as TONMO, is a great site for information about all things cephalopod.
There are lots of useful articles and a lively forum for squid fans everywhere. New Zealand squid scientists Dr Steve O'Shea and Dr Kat Bolstad from AUT are on the staff of TONMO.
Colossal squid
Great information on TONMO from New Zealand squid experts Dr Steve O'Shea and Dr Kat Bolstad on the colossal squid, the giant squid and other deep sea cephalopods.
- » Giant squid and colossal squid fact sheets - TONMO
- » Deep-sea cephalopods - TONMO
- » Are there bigger squid out there? - You Tube video
- » Squid dissection - Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History
Giant squid — Architeuthis dux
Giant squid compete for popularity with colossal squid, but they are quite different. Check these sites to find out more.
- » Giant squid — Architeuthis dux - National Geographic
- » Giant squid — Architeuthis dux - You Tube video
Dr Steve O'Shea is a New Zealand expert on giant squid. Many of his scientific articles are available on TONMO.
- » Architeuthis (giant squid) Distribution Map - TONMO
- » Gut contents of a giant squid Architeuthis dux (Cephalopoda: Oegopsida) from New Zealand waters - TONMO
- » Estimating age and growth rate in Architeuthis dux - TONMO
Deep sea
Find out more about deep-sea creatures in New Zealand waters.
- » New Zealand deep-sea creatures - Te Ara
- » What are plankton? - Te Ara
- » Octopus and squid in New Zealand - Te Ara
For wonderful images of deep-sea animals, including squid, check out Peter Batsons images.
New Scientist reports, explores and interprets a wide range of science topics through articles, comments and videos.
FishBase provides lots of species-level data on fish. The database can be searched online by scientific or common name.
Check out a photo gallery of luminous organisms, including several squid species.
Lectures and talks
A series of lectures took place on the 1st and 2nd May 2008, to discuss the first findings about the colossal squid. Some have been recorded. You will find links to download the lectures there.
- » Lecture with a panel of scientists
- Kat Bolstad: Big Suckers: Giant Squid Research in New Zealand
- Peter Batson: Here Be Monsters … A Dark Journey to the Ocean Underworld
- Dr Eric Warrant: The Weird and Wonderful Eyes of Animals Who Live in the Dark and the Deep Sea
- Dr Steve O'Shea: Squid: Small, Giant, and Colossal
- » Science Express
- Tsunemi Kubodera: The Search for Giant Squid in Japanese Waters
- Dr Steve O'Shea: Science Express - Colossal squid
- » Giant squid research and deep-sea creatures
- Kat Bolstad: Big Suckers: Giant Squid Research in New Zealand
- Dr Eric Warrant or Dr Dan-Eric Nilsson: The Weird and Wonderful Eyes of Animals Who Live in the Dark and the Deep Sea
Antarctica and the
Southern Ocean
Great info on icy ecosystems from The Science Learning Hub. This is an initiative of the New Zealand government, funded through the Ministry of Research, Science and Technology, and developed in collaboration with educators and the science sector.
- » Icy ecosystems (ideas and concepts) - The Science Learning Hub
- » Icy ecosystems (media) - The Science Learning Hub
New Zealand runs scientific research programmes in the Antarctic region and the seas around Antarctica.
Antarctica New Zealand is responsible for developing, managing, and executing New Zealand Government activities in Antarctica and the Southern Ocean, in particular the Ross Dependency.
More in-depth cephalopod resources
Information, great images, and video of squid from National Geographic.
The Cephalopod Page is the personal web page of Dr James B Wood, Assistant Research Scientist at the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences.
The National Resource Center for Cephalopods at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, Texas, has created a database that provides taxonomic data, life history, distribution, images, videos, references, and scientific contact information on all living species of cephalopods in an easy to access, user-friendly manner.
The Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington DC, in the United States, has a team of scientists who research cephalopods.
Their website pages are a great source of information.
The Cephalopods in Action pages include images and videos of cephalopods, organised taxonomically.
Check out the Cranchiidae, the relatives of the colossal squid.
The Tree of Life web project provides multi-authored information about biodiversity. For more on molluscs check out the project.
Toothfish
Research on Antarctic toothfish is important in managing this Antarctic fishery.
Find out more about research by the National Institute of Water and Atmostpheric Research (NIWA) on the toothfish fishery and the role of toothfish in the Antarctic ecosystem.