IT IS a ferocious 2-metre-long predator that hunts in packs, and it’s lurking by a beach near you – if you happen to live on California’s central coast, where the Humboldt squid has recently taken up residence.
Historically, Humboldt, or jumbo squid (Dosidicus gigas) only ride the warm ocean currents north from the tropical waters off Central America and Mexico to California during El Niño events. Once there they feast on Pacific hake before returning to the tropics once the warm period ends.
Over the past 16 years, however, surveys of Monterey Bay’s deep waters revealed that the squid have…
