Are squid vicious?
Pete Thomas sits on the deck before diving with Humboldt squid in the Sea of Cortes. (Jim Knowlton / For the Times)
A skiff captain, front, and his client display the catch of the day, a 3-foot, 40-pound Humboldt squid, during a fishing expedition in the Sea of Cortes. (Jim Knowlton / For the Times)
Pete Thomas, left, and Rocio Lozano swim next to a Humboldt squid in the Sea of Cortes. (Jim Knowlton / For the Times)
Pete Thomas, left, and Rocio Lozano inspect a large squid hooked in the deep waters of the Sea of Cortes. (Jim Knowlton / For the Times)
Pete Thomas swims closer to a Humboldt squid in the Sea of Cortes. (Jim Knowlton / For the Times)
A Humbolt squid caught in the Sea of Cortes. The jumbo squid can reach lengths of 7 feet and weigh as much as 100 pounds. (Jim Knowlton / For the Times)
Deckmate Antonio Nunez of the dive boat Garota displays a Humbolt squid caught in a remote area southeast of La Paz. (Pete Thomas / Los Angeles Times)
Underwater video captures the moves of a Humboldt squid. (Scott Cassell / For the Times)
Long common off South America, the Humboldt squid began establishing themselves in the Gulf of California - better known as the Sea of Cortes. (Scott Cassell / For the Times)
The torpedo-shaped Humboldt squid thrive at great depths and use a form of jet propulsion to squirt themselves quickly through their hazy realm. (Scott Cassell / For the Times)
Humboldt squids are voracious animals with probing arms and tentacles lined with hundreds of gripping suckers and clasping hooks, and with beaks designed to tear off fist-sized hunks of flesh. (Scott Cassell / For the Times)
The squid invasion could be a sign that one of the richest marine areas of the world is ailing. (Jim Knowlton / For the Times)
A Humboldt squid is pulled out of the waters of the Sea of Cortes. (Scott Cassell / For the Times)
Scott Cassell holds a Humboldt squid caught in the Sea of Cortes. (Scott Cassell / For the Times)