Scientists of the National Science Museum said they succeeded in catching a deep-sea giant squid at a depth of 640 meters (2,112 feet) on December 6 in the North Pacific Ocean, some 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) south of Tokyo.

"As the video movie shows, the giant squid struggled furiously to escape the catch by spouting water from its funnel. This means they can actually swim pretty fast, in addition to their normal movement just drifting in deep waters," said Tsunemi Kubodera, head of the research team, as he showed the video to reporters.

"Probably this is the first-ever video of a live giant squid, although I have not confirmed it yet," Kubodera said.

The squid was 3.5 meters (11.55 feet) long, with a head stretching 1.4 meters, and weighed 50 kilogram (110 pounds), he said.

Kubodera said he started rolling a camera just before another member of the team caught the giant squid with a long-rope trap.

Scientists said the capture at a depth of 640 meters suggested an enormous number of squid lived at great depths.

"Squid, including giant squid, are the main food for sperm whales. And one sperm whale has to eat at least 500 kilograms of squid everyday," said Kubodera.

"About 200,000 sperm whales are thought to live in the western half of the Pacific, so you can see how many squid there should be in deep waters," he said.

Scientists would study the remains of the squid's stomach in the coming months, he added.

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