The situation of the jumbo flying squid (Dosidicus gigas) in the South Pacific changed significantly after the earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan on 11 March. Since the tsunami, which also affected Peru, the resource in the northern beaches of the country began to move away gradually and now is returning to the situation prior to the disaster. The jumbo flying squid is now 3-4 days away from the ports. This takes back the optimism felt a month ago, when plants and traders returned with special offers for unmatched quantities not seen for over a year.It seems clear that the squid are currently far out to sea, which is bad news for fishermen, since they lose a lot of time getting out that far and returning to port. What's not at all clear is whether this distance is supposed to be the impact of the tsunami--and if it is, I have a hard time imagining a plausible mechanism! The tsunami was quite small by the time it hit Peru. Why would it have driven squid, which are already offshore animals, several days' boating farther offshore?
I just realized that the title of the post promises something it does not deliver, namely, an epic sea battle between a tidal wave and a squid. Sorry about that.
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