Glass squids (family Cranchiidae) live in the boundless waters of the twilight, or mesopelagic, zone. Like other cephalopods, glass squids are covered in tiny pigment sacs called chromatophores. They often keep their chromatophores closed so their skin is basically see through. This invisibility cloak hides them from both predators and prey. When the glass squidās cover is blown, they expand their chromatophores to darken their appearance. Some may fill their body cavity with ink instead, presumably to blend into the darkness. And when danger still looms, a glass squid may squirt ink into the water and jet away. A ghostly shroud of ink creates a distraction so the squid can escape. More than 60 species of glass squids live in deep twilight waters around the world. Some are little more than 10 centimeters (four inches) long, but others are giants. In fact, the largest of all squidsāthe colossal squid (Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni), nearly 10 meters (33 feet) long and weighing up to 495 kilograms (1,091 pounds)ābelongs to the family Cranchiidae. We typically see smaller glass squids about 30 centimeters (12 inches) long, likely because the larger ones are faster swimmers that can easily elude our slow-moving submersibles.
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