Global warming creates Squidzilla?
From an article titled “Global Warming’s Silver Lining” on Wired News comes the exciting proposition that global warming may result in larger and more abundant squid.
A final potential upside to global warming is that with every degree Celsius warmer our planet gets, we could have up to 20 percent more calamari. Phillip Lee, director of the National Resource Center for Cephalopods, points out that squid are extremely sensitive to temperature, and individual cephalopods react to warmer weather by developing a larger body mass.Squid, which are mostly protein, can grow significantly faster than other animals. The largest squid ever captured was 16 feet long and weighed in at 330 pounds. But stories of monster squid up to 60 feet have been around since the 1800s.
Lee does think there is a downside to the extra sushi, though.
“We aren’t sure what’s going to happen to the actual population numbers,” he said. It’s possible that the increased warming could adversely affect the squid in an unpredictable way, such as limiting their food source, but Lee is confident that warmer weather will make individual cephalopods larger.
As always, the discussion on TONMO.com is worth a look. As we have commented before, we at squidblog are excited by the prospect of squidmageddon. But Squid God Steve is actually quite sceptical, writing:
Many cephalopod species are unlikely to be able to tolerate increased temperature (high latitude or deep-sea); increased temperatures will only benefit those species tolerant of increased temperature; cold-water species will simply vanish.
I was also particularly taken by this suggestion by snafflehound, to take advantage of this squid bonanza to help save the polar bear:
Quick bit of gene sequencing and we can cross breed the giant squid with the polar bear and make a furred, tentacled predator that is not bothered when the pack ice vanishes, capable of pursuing seals on both sea and land, and underwater. Also would make a tasty dish for bull sperm whales!