Monster from the deep hits the surface The giant squid is one of
the most enigmatic animals on the planet. It is extremely rarely
seen, except as the remains of animals that have been washed
ashore, and placed in the formalin or ethanol collections of
museums. But now, researchers at the University of Copenhagen
leading an international team, have discovered that no matter
where in the world they are found, the fabled animals are so
closely related at the genetic level that they represent a
single, global population, and thus despite previous statements
to the contrary, a single species worldwide. Thus the circle,
that was first opened in 1857 by the famous Danish naturalist
Japetus Steenstrup as he first described the animal, can be
closed. It was Steenstrup that realized this beast was the same
animal that in the past gave rise to centuries of sailors tails,
and even in more recent became immortalized by writers such as
Jules Verne and Herman Melville, by demonstrating that the
monster was based in reality,