#giantsquid — Public Fediverse posts

Why the giant squid is not the kraken, or a cryptid

The common association of the giant squid as the source animal of the kraken myth is oversimplified and erroneous. Giant squid were known by sailors and not seen as monsters.

It is widely accepted as “conventional wisdom” when speaking about the giant squid that the animal was the basis for the myth of the Kraken. Additionally, the giant squid is considered a cryptid that was successfully “discovered” to be a real animal. As fun and endlessly repeated as these ideas are, they simply aren’t true. Some modern zoology and history writers (such as Darren Naish in Hunting Monsters, 2016), have stated that the descriptions of the kraken do not fit that of a giant squid. But until 2023, there was not a reference that outlined the evidence against both common tropes. The Giant Squid in Transatlantic Culture by Otto Latva dissembles these ideas.

There are many books, even by respected naturalists, that repeat the giant squid-kraken association. However, none of them went on the proverbial deep dive to examine ship’s records and the depictions of sea creatures prior to the 20th century. Latva is a historian who has produced the “first historical inquiry into the giant squid”. In the process, we see the full scope of what seafaring humans thought of cephalopods through the lens of folklore, natural history, and utility. That outlook changed from the late 18th through the 19th century when concepts of animal taxonomy evolved, nature was seen as entertainment, and media became popular and expedient.

The kraken: a vague monster

Prior to the 18th century, the “kraken” was known as a traditional creature of ancient Scandinavia. It was said to be the most immense creature on the Earth, as big as an island, a mile and a half across. The stories are varied because we don’t have written records from 13th century sailors. Differentiating between the tales of the kraken, “krake”, “kraxen” or “krabben”, and the “hafgufa” is difficult. There was never a recorded sighting of the creature called the “kraken”. From the modern perspective, we can understand that the kraken was not any kind of known animal, but was more likely an overarching label for a variety of mysterious oceanic phenomena. However, that explanation didn’t make a good story.

Pontoppidan’s The Natural History of Norway (1753) introduced the wider public to the stories of the kraken alongside those of sea serpents and mermaids. Among the vague descriptions of a kraken was the claim that a carcass with long arms washed on shore and was identified as a young krake (interchangable with kraken). Yet other ideas about the kraken was that it resembled a huge starfish. Or it was a giant fish/whale. But nobody actually knew, because it wasn’t a singular creature. Therefore, it had no definitive form.

The distinct and strong association between the kraken and an enormous squid didn’t happen until later 19th century (and only by way of the reputation of the octopus or poulpe). In an effort to demythify folklore, and provide natural explanations, several writers linked the kraken to the giant squid and popularized that view. Their conclusion that Norwegian sailors used appearances of gigantic squid (of any species) to create the kraken tales was wholly speculative and without basis. Unfortunately, the association stuck even though the behavior, size, and description were all wrong.

Latva’s conclusion was that there was no historical evidence for the kraken as a derivative of sighting enormous squid by early shipmen. The modern assumption that the kraken had been a mystery creature until the giant squid was discovered ignores the complex cultural processes that created a false association and embedded it into popular culture. Writers like Bernard Heuvelmans (1958), Richard Ellis (1999), and others, didn’t have access to the bigger picture regarding the understanding of gigantic squid throughout history. The kraken = giant squid idea was a convenient and dramatic example used to make modern cryptozoology sound useful, exciting, and necessary. But it was faulty.

From fish bait to Cephalomania

According to ship records (particularly whaling ships), Latva showed that 18th century seafarers were curious about extra large squid they certainly saw. They may have been amazed, but they didn’t fear them. Large specimens were just an oversized version of the typical ubiquitous squid. The animals was not going to sink your ship. More importantly, they saw it as a useful bycatch for dog food and bait. No records or documented stories described the giant squid as a dangerous monster. Latva knocks down the often repeated trope that seamen always saw it as a mysterious monster. Instead, the historical records show they knew it pretty well and thought little of it. No mystery. No monster.

The monstrous reputation was culturally constructed in a particular time period based on certain factors. Natural historians could only speculate on the behavior of cephalopods (which they didn’t differentiate well). In the newly applied system of Linnean taxonomy, the octopus was recognized where the squid was ignored. Also, the octopus was assumed to be dangerous and to grow to gigantic proportions. Even though this was false, the rumors successfully spread. Sailors and writers propagated fanciful stories. Harmless encounters at sea were exaggerated to represent a dramatic battle with a huge, tentacled and ravenous creature trying to pluck men off the ship.

Eventually, when enormous squid were recognized as specific animals, based on carcasses and body parts, the squid accreted the negative qualities attributed to the octopus by default. Ironically, we now know that octopuses do not get gigantic, even though some cryptozoologists like to assert that they do. It is some squid that get quite large. Still, no extant squid comes close to being the size of an island.

The monstrous version of the giant squid developed in about 100 years from the late 18th to end of the 19th century. Starting around the 1860s, transatlantic cultures experienced “cephalomania” – an interest in all things related to octopus, squid and cuttlefish. The animals were wanted for aquariums. Fictional depictions appeared in media for entertainment. They became a sensation.

The naming of Architeuthis dux, by Steenstrup in 1860, meant that it had a name. Eventually, Architeuthis became synonymous with “giant squid”, with the term used generically for several different species of enormous squid. It is unclear just how many species are in the Architeuthidae family but they occur worldwide. There is also the more massive colossal squid from the poorly known genus Mesonychoteuthis.

Not a cryptid or kraken, then or now

Casual discussion, on platforms and in media, play very loose with the definition of “cryptid”. What does it even mean to be a “hidden animal”? Why is it hiding? All common animals were once “known” solely based on encounter stories prior to the scientific age. It is incorrect to say an animal used to be considered “cryptid” if it was revealed to explorers in a new land who successfully sought it out and then found it in short order. It wasn’t hiding – it’s just that we weren’t looking in that place to find, collect, study, and name it. Recall that cryptozoology was only developed in the mid 20th century and the term “cryptid” wasn’t derived in 1983.

It is incorrect to call the giant squid a “cryptid” when it was already recognized by seafarers and shore natives. Those who represent the giant squid as a “cryptid” are projecting a false narrative onto its history. It was repeatedly found and even named prior to the 20th century! A cryptid has to be suspected, mostly through anecdotes, so that it gains enough attention for people to look for it. Finding a new creature by accident, prediction, or recognition is regular zoological discovery.

To say that it represented the “kraken” is also wrong in many aspects. Both “cryptid” and “kraken” are context-dependent. The kraken is a monstrous myth of the ocean that represented fear and was dramatized by imagination. It might have more likely been inspired by great whales but essentially it was a tall tale, a fictional entity by which no one living thing is representative. To take it to literally be a giant squid ignores key evidence.

Can we call the “kraken” a cryptid? No. In these modern times we know that many mythical creatures appeared in lore but did not represent a singular unidentified animal. We now know enough to say that the kraken, sea serpents, dragons, unicorns, etc. were symbolic, amalgamations, allegories, misinterpretations, or just entertainment.

Finally, it’s important to recognize that imagery in popular culture has a huge effect on how people perceive the subjects. Popular books and movies are effective at demonizing animals (e.g., Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas and Jaws.). The sensationalized and fictional depiction of giant squid as dangerous monsters was not based in fact, but it created a long-standing reputation. In cryptozoology, where there is an obvious knowledge gap, speculation quickly fills in for knowledge, then gets repeated over and over. After decades, everyone assumes the speculation was based on fact. More often than not, as we learn more, we find the speculation is baseless, erroneous, and is better off discarded.

I have no expectation that this reasoning will stop any of the kids on r/cryptids or the biology-illiterate journalists from naming the giant squid as the kraken of lore. Since this is Modern Cryptozoology, I feel confident in the position that we should leave the nonsense behind and move forward with better information. No doubt, many commenters will put up a fight because they love the cool story, it’s logical and defendable that we drop the “kraken” reference and stop calling the giant squid a “found cryptid”.

I recommend reading Latva’s book for the full story. Find it at your local academic library.
The giant squid in transatlantic culture : the monsterization of molluscs

💁🏻‍♀️ TIL: 🐋🦑 At the American Museum of Natural History, a glass-free sperm #whale and giant squid #diorama mimics the dark deep #ocean.

Maintenance specialist Janet Spiller spends hours cleaning it with a backpack vacuum and fiber pole attachments. The #exhibit draws on real evidence like sucker marks on whale skin and #squid beaks to depict a dramatic #predator-prey battle.

👉 https://www.popsci.com/science/sperm-whale-giant-squid-diorama-cleaning/

#spermwhale #giantsquid #amnh #museum #ocean #marine #science #nature #work #job #animals #conservation #biology #marinebiology #wildlife

Time to detect #giantsquid in #Australia https://www.discoverwildlife.com/animal-facts/marine-animals/giant-squid-edna-australia?shem=dsdf,sharefoc,agadiscoversdl,,sh%2Fx%2Fdiscover%2Fm1%2F4 #wildlife

Save the #giantsquid 🦑
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/apr/20/lawsuit-new-bp-oil-project-gulf-of-mexico?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other
My take from 2010 here
https://news.mongabay.com/2010/07/oil-disaster-threatens-gulf-of-mexicos-deep-water-titans/ #trump #DonaldTrump #wildlife #oil #fossilfuels #climate #animalrights #nature #biodiversity

Sword of the Sea review: One day, it rained
Sword of the Sea shows that life is precious and perservering
https://www.sidequesting.com/2025/11/sword-of-the-sea-review-one-day-it-rained/
#Reviews #GiantSquid #indie #IndieZone #playstation #Review #SwordOfTheSea

This time we’ll be seeing all of the ‘invertebrates’ made in the Panini mini series. This is probably the most taxonomically broad one, and also the largest group. They’d also be among the more difficult ones to identify to species, but sometimes guesses can be made. On the upside, the small size makes them appropriate for dioramas and accessories with conventional figures. As long as the […]

🔥 #SpermWhale surfaces w/ #GiantSquid in its Mouth

Grayceon – Then the Darkness Review

By Dolphin Whisperer

Novelty in the metalsphere exists in many folds, whether it be the marrying of virtuosity and familiar structures or the exploration of foreign sounds and textures in a rock/metal context.1 Grayceon, for the better part of the past twenty years, has lingered in the latter path from 2007’s self-titled debut to this newest grand work, Then the Darkness, finding value in the riffy and amp-driven space between emotive, layered electric cello work. Trading a traditional, handheld four-stringed pulse for a classical, stand-up, sullen expression, Grayceon’s Jackie Perez Gratz (Giant Squid, ex-Ludicra) has led this San Francisco-based troupe through waxing journeys of post-inflected, prog-minded heavy metal grandeur with a bowed breath of fresh air time and time again. And now, with Then the Darkness, Grayceon looks to double down on their signature sound—a culmination of frustrations in fancy form.

Possessing both the prowess to open Then the Darkness with a blistering cry (“Thousand Year Storm”) and approach its close with a near lullaby (“(Untitled)”), Gratz and Grayceon continue to find a necessary diversity in their growing body of work. And in the capable engineering hands of trusted partner Jack Shirley,2 Gratz’s lilting vocal lure against counterpoint chamber-influenced swings find an increasing warmth against thick, finger-picked guitar runs and long-drawn crescendos. Time has weathered Gratz’s voice into a full crackle and alto croon that reflects the kind of mystical incantation that you might hear in latter-day Sabbath Assembly, as well as providing room for growth in harsh screeching accompaniment reminiscent of the minstrel Jekyll and Hyde performances of early Ludicra. Yet Grayceon remains in their own element first, even weaving moments of self-referential melodies throughout the back half of Then the Darkness to root deeply the recurring nature of the traumas each of their works explore.

As an exercise in textural excellence, though, Then the Darkness would struggle to entertain through its mammoth eighty-minute sermon if not backed by its aching heart narrative. With themes revolving around the complex nature of evolving relationships—between parent and child, between friends, between partners, between society and its most downtrodden—Gratz navigates each sorrowful tune with a warbling pathos that reads full and earnest in its many cracks. And while this downcast reading flows through much of the journey, the long fadeout from “Mahsa” to instrumental segue “Then the Darkness” renders most of the C-side (“Then…” through “Song of the Snake”) far more placid and buried than the lively bounce that “Holding Lines” provides to the closing chapters. It’s hard to escape the “what if” in terms of what could happen in a more streamlined experience—despite the high quality of Grayceon’s strongest offerings, the slightest dip or departure feels like a missed opportunity where their other works to date have chosen a lighter load.

However, Grayceon’s mastery of studio play emboldens simple structures with deft attacks to fuel the craveability of Then the Darkness. With the ebb and flow of a jam session, quicker cuts fill the air with rockin’ riffs, tight rhythms, urgent melodies, and a classic, volume-driven tone (“One Third,” “3 Points of Light,” “Holding Lines”). And while it’s up front harmonic excess in plucked guitar ascensions that collide with sliding bow tension pepper these tracks with short-term pleasure, it’s the subtle double-punched lines and diverging, hard-panned cello-guitar fill flickers that stimulate an urge to devour all nooks of sound available. And as buttery-yet-jagged riffage finds a crooked home between layered cello stabs (“Thousand Year Storm”) and slithering, off-kilter refrains (“Song of the Snake”), each cut in careful construction escalates to crescendos coordinated in explosive and sullen moods. The longest track, “Mahsa,” cranks all of these techniques to keep each recursion along a gentle climb rather than a flat stroll.

If providing an audience with a plate too full to finish was the goal, Then the Darkness has more than fulfilled the task. From humble roots as a scrappy power trio to this newest incarnation as presence-demanding storytellers, Grayceon’s path of human travail has brought about a gargantuan work that demands attention and dedication. In its four-sided tale, Then the Darkness strikes with an undeniable, hook-laden melancholy when its fire burns brightest. In isolation, no track falters. And though a waning intensity keeps it from being a masterpiece, Grayceon offers enough top-shelf material to make a long service worthwhile.

Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 5 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Translation Loss Records | Bandcamp
Websites: grayceon.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/grayceon
Releases Worldwide: July 25th, 2025

#2025 #35 #AmericanMetal #GiantSquid #Grayceon #Jul25 #Ludicra #PostMetal #ProgressiveMetal #Review #Reviews #SabbathAssembly #ThenTheDarkness #TranslationLossRecords

Difference in size between a Giant Squid's beak and a regular sized Squid's beak.
County Donegal, Ireland.

Cormacscoast.com walking tours

#wildatlanticway #walkingtours #discoverireland #keepdiscovering #marinelife #biodiversity #giantsquid #squidbeak #Ireland

The hunt for the giant squid and Bigfoot emphasizes different methods in the quest for elusive species formed by variations in scientific credibility and proof. #Bigfoot #giantsquid https://bigfootbeat.blog/post/780432282580385792/why-bigfoot-and-the-giant-squid-differ

Any impulse purchases made under the effects of The Flu cannot be judged! 🦑 #Plushie #BodyPillow #Squid #MarineLife #MarineBiology #DeepSea #GiantSquid

My 25 years of palaeoart chronology...

Last few pictures of my Western Interior Seaway paintings (2021) for the Children's Museum of Indianapolis, USA. Featured are Squalicorax, Tusoteuthis, and Apsopelix.

#Art #Painting #PaleoArt #PalaeoArt #SciArt #SciComm #DigitalArt #Illustration #Dinosaurs #Birds #Reptiles #Palaeontology #Paleontology #Squalicorax #Shark #Sharks #GiantSquid #Octopus #JurassicPark #JurassicWorld

My 25 years of palaeoart chronology...

Here's Tusoteuthis with and without bioluminescence, from my Western Interior Seaway mural 3, painted in 2021 for the Children's Museum of Indianapolis, USA.

#Art #Painting #PaleoArt #PalaeoArt #SciArt #SciComm #DigitalArt #Illustration #Dinosaurs #Birds #Reptiles #Palaeontology #Paleontology #GiantSquid #Octopus #Tusoteuthis #JurassicPark #JurassicWorld

My 25 years of palaeoart chronology...

Some crops from my Western Interior Seaway mural 3, painted in 2021 for the Children's Museum of Indianapolis, USA. Featured are Squalicorax, Tusoteuthis, and Apsopelix.

#Art #Painting #PaleoArt #PalaeoArt #SciArt #SciComm #DigitalArt #Illustration #Dinosaurs #Birds #Reptiles #Palaeontology #Paleontology #Squalicorax #Shark #Sharks #GiantSquid #Octopus #JurassicPark #JurassicWorld

My 25 years of palaeoart chronology...

Here's Western Interior Seaway mural 3, which I painted in 2021 for the Children's Museum of Indianapolis, USA. Featured are a school of Apsopelix fish, Squalicorax battling an octopod, and a Tusoteuthis with blue bioluminescence.

#Art #Painting #PaleoArt #PalaeoArt #SciArt #SciComm #DigitalArt #Illustration #Dinosaurs #Birds #Reptiles #Palaeontology #Paleontology #Squalicorax #Shark #Sharks #GiantSquid #Octopus #JurassicPark #JurassicWorld

1. #Anciients: Beyond the Reach of the Sun

https://album.link/gx2cmbfh5tknz

#ProgressiveMetal #Sludge #Stoner

FFO #GiantSquid #Iotunn #Kingcrow

The Kraken was a giant squid. #kraken #giantsquid https://youtu.be/r0J1EZaW6iY?si=9dg_cZ6f3vb1kgUp

How Big Do Giant (and Colossal) Squid Get?🦑 📏
I got interviewed on this video by Maria from Sea and Me for the youtube channel Wild World, to talk about squid science difficulties:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4YZ5B95dso
#Biology #Science #DeepSea #GiantSquid

why didn't the #GiantSquid or #ColossalSquid get named kraken?

we found the #kraken

why didn't we name it…

#cryptids #zoology #mythology

Go, Seattle Kraken!

My husband plays recreational hockey here in Seattle; they play twice a week on the practice ice for the Kraken. You can imagine his excitement about how far the Kraken have come in the Stanley Cup playoffs. Tonight's game against Dallas will be a nail-biter.

Me? I'm usually in my studio, picking up how a game is going by his silence or shouts. But I did paint my own version of a kraken -- or giant squid -- and put it on a tote bag.

https://kitozbooks.com/product/kraken-tote-bag/

#kraken #seattle #StanleyCup #squid #GiantSquid #TraditionalArt #HandDrawn #art #TraditionalArt #Painting #Wildlife #PNW #WashingtonState #illustration #hockey #playoffs

Japanese divers shoot rare video of a giant #squid swimming along coast https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20230112_18/ 🦑 #DeepSea #GiantSquid #Japan #MarineScience