Case file · Cryptid
First film of a live colossal squid
On 9 March 2025 the Schmidt Ocean Institute's ROV SuBastian filmed a 30 cm juvenile colossal squid at about 600 m near the South Sandwich Islands, the first confirmed footage of the species alive.
2025 CE · -58.00, -26.50 · status: official
The account
The sighting came on an Ocean Census expedition aboard the R/V Falkor (too), a century after the species was named from remains found in a sperm whale.
The researched reading
A real first for science, not a mystery: a juvenile of a species known for a century, filmed alive and identified by specialists. The only “monster” is in the headlines.
| Explanation | Weight | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Undetermined | 52% | The share a generic explanation had beyond what has been shown for this case: it fits many cases like this one, but has not been demonstrated for this one. |
| Something known, misidentified | 40% | A known animal, correctly identified: the 30 cm juvenile filmed in HD by ROV SuBastian at 600 m was checked by independent cephalopod experts, including Kat Bolstad and Aaron Evans, who confirmed Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni from the hooks on its arms before the footage was released. The only live question is the species, and the closest alternative, the glacial glass squid, is also a known animal. |
| An unknown or out-of-place animal | 3% | The species was described in 1925 from remains in a sperm whale; nothing about it is unknown, only its life in the wild is little observed. |
| A cultural story | 2% | The “colossal monster” framing in the press borrows from kraken lore; the animal filmed was a transparent juvenile the length of a forearm. |
| A hoax or fabrication | 1% | The video comes from a scientific expedition with a full chain of custody and outside verification. |
| Perception, memory or mind | 1% | The identification rests on recorded footage and anatomy, not on anyone’s perception. |
| Genuinely anomalous | 1% | Nothing in the footage is outside known biology. |
Official position: Schmidt Ocean Institute and the Ocean Census announced it as the first confirmed footage of a live colossal squid in its habitat.