So, you were proud of that 5K you ran last fall?
Well, not to one up you, but the Illex argentinus is going to one-up you. By a lot.
Each year, the Illex argentinus (commonly called the Argentine shortfin squid) migrates thousands of miles between its feeding and spawning grounds.
Thousands of Miles
Thousands of miles can be hard to put into perspective. Let’s say the average is around 1500 miles. That’s over 55 marathons. And again, these shortfin squid do this every. single. year.
The path is from the South Atlantic to the waters off Argentina, Uruguay, and Brazil. It’s not an exact route because ocean currents, water temperature, food availability, and the location of spawning grounds impact it every year, but the estimate is that the distance is typically between 2,000 to 3,000 kilometers. Again, that’s an average around 1500 miles, or 250 round-trips to your local McDonalds*.
That puts even Jono Ridler to shame.
*Best Neighborhood says the average distance to a McDonald’s in the US is 3 miles 🤯
squid and stuff 