Colossal best wishes for the holidays from the squid

Kia ora koutou

It’s Christmas time at Te Papa and the team behind the colossal squid exhibition wishes squid fans everywhere  a happy and safe time over the holidays.

It’s been a colossal year in many ways – and we’ve finished it by bringing to you the only display in the world of a colossal squid.

We know some of you are disappointed that the squid isn’t bigger! Some of you think we’ve got a bigger and better colossal squid out the back somewhere.

But no! this is our biggest colossal squid. It’s not a giant squid remember. A giant squid is a completely different kind of  squid, called Architeuthis dux.

We think our colossal squid is big enough. She weighs 495 kilograms  – which is about 660 Christmas puddings or more than 1,000 pavlovas.

The colossal squid is also a special creature because at this time of year it  reminds us of the planet we share, the things we still have to discover about it and our need to care for it in the future.

Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year to everyone!

5 Comments

  1. Posted 24 December 2008 at 12.43pm | Permalink

    Only in New Zealand would squid weight be calculated in pavlova. Have a good one

  2. Nicolai
    Posted 26 December 2008 at 10.57am | Permalink

    Aloha from Hawai’i

    The build a squid game is very enjoyable.
    How old is the oldest (built) squid in this game? How far has it travelled? How much weight, if any, has it put on?

    Where is he/she now? If you give its name it would be fun for others to track.

    Also, about the life-span; I see many entries that are 0 days old. Doesn’t make much sense to me, as I’m almost certain that Te Papa is closed for the holiday?

    How long will my squid live? Do they get taken down after a certain period of inactivity?

    Also, thank you to the creator. What a lovely idea!

  3. Emma @ Te Papa
    Posted 26 December 2008 at 1.42pm | Permalink

    Ah – the Aussies might want to nick off with our pavlovas! :)

    We’ll track down the eldest squidling – but might have to wait until those on the team are back from their summer break.

    And no – Te Papa doesn’t close – you can come and see us any day of the year! Big ups to all those who are working these holidays :-)

  4. Posted 28 December 2008 at 6.47am | Permalink

    I laughed when you compared to pavlova, but seriously that is HUGE!

    I saw the one in Auckland at the seaworld, near mission bay… but wow!

  5. Emma @ Te Papa
    Posted 6 January 2009 at 10.39am | Permalink

    Hey Rob

    Happy New Year! I’ve not seen the one in Auckland – is it a giant squid? How is it displayed?
    You should come down and see the colossal too :)

One Trackback

  1. [...] Nicolai from Hawai’i wants to know how old the oldest squid is. Well, the first ones were made around or a bit before 13 December, so the oldest is now about 26 days old. Here are two squid you can follow: [...]

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