Fishermen hauled the first intact colossal squid into the San Aspiring fishing boat on February 22, 2007, off the coast of Antarctica. At the time, they measured it at about 33 feet and just over 1000 pounds.
This monster had been eating a Patagonian toothfish on the line it was pulled in on. Like the giant squid, these cephalapods battle sperm whales deep in the ocean. The first colossal squid tentacles ever seen were pulled from the belly of whale in 1925.
Though this one is the largest colossal specimen ever found, it is a male — female squid are generally bigger.
They froze the 2007 colossal specimen until April 30, 2008, when it was thawed out in a pool of brine so it could be examined.
Scientists think that freezing the squid shrunk the specimen.
But it still had its huge eye, one of the biggest of any animal on earth. Its giant iris measured 10.8 inches across, larger than a dinner plate.
And the squid's lower beak measured 42.5 millimeters. Even larger beaks, up for 49 millimeters, have been found inside sperm whales.
The same boat, the San Aspiring, caught the newly dissected colossal squid in December of 2013. It was pulled up from about a mile below the surface in the same Antarctic waters.
The researchers had to use a forklift to maneuver the squid into a tank for dissection.
Rotating hooks and suckers on the tentacles help the colossal squid pull prey into its beak.
The museum dissecting the squid tweeted "The squid wasn't very keen to part with it, but the beak is out" during the examination.
Giant squid have similar numbers of arms and tentacles, and the same hooks on those tentacles, but the species are genetically different. Colossal squid have mostly been found around Antarctica, though some of the parts found in sperm whales have been found further north.
The squid was female, and carried eggs inside her mantle, the main body part.
Along with two massive eyes, the colossal squid also has three hearts. One pumps blood around the body, the other two help power the gills.
Over the next couple of weeks, Te Papa museum will be reporting findings and answering questions about the colossal squid.
Now that you know about the colossal squid, see what's inside a great white shark.
