Rare Deep-Sea Video Shows a Squid Mom Carrying Its Eggs For Safety

The ocean is frightening. There are a lot of things that you might want to eat for lunch.

Squids use a giant ball of mucus to protect their eggs. Eggs are deposited directly on the ocean floor. One squid appears to have a different strategy.

Recent footage taken by researchers from the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute shows a deep-sea squid carrying a dainty sheet of hundreds of eggs as she swims through the depths.

Scientists have been able to see a whole new world using remotely operated vehicles.

The new footage was obtained on a recent dive using the ROV Doc Ricketts, equipped with 4K cameras for high-resolution views of whatever creatures it might encounter down there in the dark

The first time scientists saw the brooding behavior of Bathyteuthis squids was at a depth of 1,490 meters.

The first time they saw a Bathyteuthis squid in the depths of Monterey Bay was in 2005.

They are known for staying with and protecting their eggs. Only three species of squid are known to brood their young, and although it's not clear what the reason is, keeping precious babies safe from nasty predators is likely the top priority.

There's a lot going on down there we don't know about, and scientists think there may be other brooding squids.

squid mamas will carry eggs until they hatch in order to give the hatchlings their best shot at survival squids are semelparous because they only reproduce once in their lives before they die. Vampire squids are not actually squids.

This means that protecting her eggs is one of the final acts of her doting mom.