DID SHOCK WAVES FROM TESTS KILL GIANT SQUIDS?
MADRID - Shock waves from tests carried out by the Spanish navy have killed four giant squids - one the length of a bus - off Spain's coast in recent days, said Mr Luis Laria, president of marine protection agency Cepesma, on Thursday.
The giant squid, mythologised as the monster that attacked Captain Nemo's Nautilus in Jules Verne's 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea, is the world's largest invertebrate and lives at depths of up to 2km.
Mr Josep Gallard, a leading scientist working on the navy ship Hesperides, however, denied that techniques used to study the ocean floor were harmful as 'the changes in pressure are very slight'.
In the last few days, three giant squids have washed up on Spain's northern Asturias coast, and a fourth was still floating offshore on Thursday, Mr Laria said. One was 12m long.
Last year, three giant squids washed up in the same area. Scientists said a range of reasons, from military operations to global warming, could be blamed. -- Reuters
MADRID - Shock waves from tests carried out by the Spanish navy have killed four giant squids - one the length of a bus - off Spain's coast in recent days, said Mr Luis Laria, president of marine protection agency Cepesma, on Thursday.
The giant squid, mythologised as the monster that attacked Captain Nemo's Nautilus in Jules Verne's 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea, is the world's largest invertebrate and lives at depths of up to 2km.
Mr Josep Gallard, a leading scientist working on the navy ship Hesperides, however, denied that techniques used to study the ocean floor were harmful as 'the changes in pressure are very slight'.
In the last few days, three giant squids have washed up on Spain's northern Asturias coast, and a fourth was still floating offshore on Thursday, Mr Laria said. One was 12m long.
Last year, three giant squids washed up in the same area. Scientists said a range of reasons, from military operations to global warming, could be blamed. -- Reuters
