“I screamed before the rest of it came into the screen.” Deep-sea scientists movie uncommon creature deep in Pacific Ocean

When deep-sea researchers had been surveying the Californian seafloor, roughly two miles underwater, an elusive creature emerged from the gloom.

“I was sitting right next to the screens in the control room when I saw what looked like tentacles coming into the top corner of the video,” says Olívia Soares Pereira, an MBARI (Monterey Bay Aquarium Institute) postdoctoral fellow.

“I thought it might be a cool jelly, but as soon as the little ‘elbows’ appeared, I knew exactly what it was and immediately screamed ‘Magnapinna!’ before the rest of the squid even came into the screen. It was incredibly exciting!”

It has two undulating massive fins, eight arms and two tentacles, and was filmed hovering above the seafloor.

The bigfin squid (Magnapinna sp.) isn’t seen, and the sighting marks the primary confirmed dwell statement within the Northeastern Pacific Ocean. Only round 70 bigfin squid have ever been noticed or collected.

The analysis crew used a laser measuring system to estimate the dimensions of the squid. They concluded that the animal was roughly 1.24 metres (4.1 toes) lengthy from the highest of its physique to the tip of its arms.

The sighting occurred throughout a current survey of Davidson Seamount by scientists from MBARI and the US company NOAA. Seamounts are underwater mountains (which are sometimes of volcanic origin), with the submerged peaks typically within the deep sea.

The Davidson Seamount, situated 130 kilometres (80 miles) southwest of Monterey, California, is described as a biodiversity hotspot, with earlier expeditions revealing historical corals and an octopus breeding floor.

Top picture: MBARI researchers and collaborators from NOAA’s Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary observe a bigfin squid (Magnapinna). Credit: 2026 MBARI