Apparently sharks are on the ropes as a species and consequently these jumbo squid are taking advantage of their absence by traveling into coastal waters to feed on whatever they want.
They are both bad and hungry. Imagine being grabbed and bit by a Macaw parrot like beak; see the movie for details. They can range in size from 3-feet to 7-feet and it is perfectly okay to fish and eat these "cracken" since they are aggressive predators and their populations are exploding due to the over-fishing of sharks and swordfish.
From Mother Nature Network:
"Hake; [fish] has been clobbered, apparently, by these squid," said Bruce Robison, senior scientist at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute. "Its decline exactly matches [the squid's] rise."
In order to compete, a number of fishing boat operators in California have been adding nighttime voyages. But the additional moonlit expeditions aren't designed to catch traditional fish at odd hours — they are designed to turn the hunters into the hunted. Jumbo squid, it turns out, make a tasty calamari steak.
[Link]
You know they are heading to Zuma. The ocean life there is so diverse and abundant. I have seen whales at play at Drainpipe, dolphins, reys, schools of flying fish during el nino periods and with that sort of diversity, these Humbolt Squid will be heading there. So watch you feet if you are surfing and poke them in the eye if one grabs you.
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