A fresh look at one of the ocean's most vexing sea creatures, the cockeyed squid, may have finally solved the mystery of the animal's bizarre appearance.
For decades, scientists have wondered why the strange squid sported a set of mismatched eyes with one being small and black while the other is large and yellow.
However an exhaustive new study of the creature's behavior underwater appears to have shed light on what spawned the squid's ocular development.
Researchers combed through a vast archive of videos recorded by marine biologists and found over 150 examples of the squid in its natural environment.
What they noticed was that the creature has a peculiar method of swimming which seems to make use of its unique peepers with one eye watching for activity above and the other searching for prey below.
It is now believed that this is why the creature developed 'specialized' eyes, since the two types of observation require particular ocular attributes, especially at the depth and location where the cockeyed squid resides.
Now that the reasoning for the squid's remarkable appearance appears to be answered, perhaps it will finally stop getting the side eye from scientists.
Source: New Scientist