On Christmas Eve a giant squid, Architeuthis dux, ventured into Japan’s Toyama Bay and swam beneath a pier full of observers. The 12-foot long squid stayed in the bay for several hours, giving diver Akinobu Kimura the chance to suit up and film the elusive creature underwater.

CNN interviewed Kimura, and this is what he had to say: “My curiosity was way bigger than fear, so I jumped into the water and go close to it. This squid was not damaged and looked lively, spurting ink and trying to entangle his tentacles around me. I guided the squid toward to the ocean, several hundred meters from the area it was found in, and it disappeared into the deep sea.”

Japan was the location of the first ever photographed and filmed live giant squid in the ocean. According to Yuki Ikushi, the curator of Uozu Aquarium in Uozu, Toyama, there were 16 reports of Architeuthis squid trapped by fishing nets last year.

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