Do Sperm whales battle with giant squid?
Although male Sperm whales often have large scars on their bodies the scars are usually the result of battles with other adult males and not the result of life-and-death struggles with monstrous squid. Some whales have been seen with large sucker-shaped scars around their heads and these may well have been caused by large squid which the whale was attempting to eat. The largest recorded squid eaten by a Sperm whale was 19.5m long (longer than most Sperm whales) and must have put up a fierce fight to resist being swallowed up whole. Most squid eaten by Sperm whales are, however, much smaller and weigh less than 7kgs.
Although male Sperm whales often have large scars on their bodies the scars are usually the result of battles with other adult males and not the result of life-and-death struggles with monstrous squid. Some whales have been seen with large sucker-shaped scars around their heads and these may well have been caused by large squid which the whale was attempting to eat. The largest recorded squid eaten by a Sperm whale was 19.5m long (longer than most Sperm whales) and must have put up a fierce fight to resist being swallowed up whole.
