Flying squid tracked 600 km east of Tokyo

Japanese researchers confirm existence of flying squid By Ida Torres / Japan Daily Press, February 8, 2013 Looks like Olympic Gold medalist Usain Bolt may finally have some competition. Japanese researchers published a study in German magazine Marine Biology about the ocean squid can fly more than 30 meters through the air at a speed of 11.2 metres per second. That’s .89 meters per second faster than the two-time 100m champion adjudged to be the “fastest man in the world”. Jun Yamamoto, from Hokkaido University says that the squid can fly that fast especially if it wants to escape predators. The mollusk bursts out of the ocean by shooting a jet of water at high pressure and then opens its fins to glide. Witnesses have already seen the flying squid and now this study will help people understand them more. Back in July 2011, Yamamoto and his team were tracking a shoal of 100 oceanic squid in the northwest Pacific 600 kilometres (370 miles) east of Tokyo when they came across the 20 centimetre (8-inch) oceanic squids that suddenly launched themselves in the air. “Once they finish shooting out the water, they glide by spreading out their fins and arms. As they land back in the water, the fins are all folded back into place to minimise the impact,” they said in the report. The squid remains in the air for three seconds and travels upwards for about 30 meters. They believe it is a defense mechanism to avoid being eaten. But being out of the water leaves them vulnerable to other creatures that will look at them as food, like sea birds. Still, this finding shows that not all squids can be considered just creatures that live in water. [ via AsiaOne ]