Colossal squid
The largest recorded specimen was captured in 2007 by a New Zealand fishing boat off Antarctica. It was initially estimated to measure in length and weigh . The squid was taken back to New Zealand for scientific study. A study on the specimen later showed its actual weight was , but it only measured in total length as a result of the tentacles' shrinking "post mortem".
Cephalopod size
The giant and colossal squids have the largest recorded eyes of any living animal, with a maximum diameter of at least and a pupil (Nilsson "et al.", 2012:683). This is three times the size of the largest fish eyes—up to in swordfish—and more than twice the diameter of the largest whale eyes—up to , , and in blue, humpback, and sperm whales, respectively—which are the largest among vertebrates (Nilsson "et al.", 2012:683). A large colossal squid caught in 2014 and dissected at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa reportedly had eyes across (Farquhar, 2014). There are unconfirmed reports from the 19th century of giant squid eyes up to across (Land & Nilsson, 2012:86). Only the extinct ichthyosaurs are known to have approached these dimensions (Motani "et al.", 1999; Humphries & Ruxton, 2002), with some species having eyes up to in diameter (Nilsson "et al.", 2012:687).