The Nautilus had returned to the surface of the waves, stationed on the top steps, one

of the seamen undid the bolts of the hatch, but he had scarcely unscrewed the nuts when

the hatcher blew up with tremendous violence. Obviously, pulled open by the suckers on the

devilfish's arm. With a sweep of the axe, Captain Nemo chopped off this fearsome tentacle

which slid writhing down the steps. Two more arms lashed the air, swooped on the seamen

stationed in front of Captain Nemo and carried the fellow away with irresistible violence.

Seized by the tentacle and glued to its suckers, the unfortunate man was swinging in the air

at the mercy of this enormous appendage. He gassed, he choked, he yelled, the poor fellow was

done for. Who could tear him from such a powerful grip?

That wildly vivid story is an extract from 20,000 leagues under the sea by legendary French writer

Jules Verne. It was first published in 1870 and translated into English by Frederick Paul Walter.

It follows the adventures of Captain Nemo and his magnificent ship The Nautilus, which not only

sailed above the waves but underwater as well. One of the most terrifying and exciting parts of

the novel is when the crew encounter a giant sea squid, the image of those huge tentacles thrashing

and seizing the sailor with their suckers never fails to scare and delight. This story is a wonderful

piece of science fiction but squid and for that matter giant squid do exist and more recently

those suckers have been causing a lot of excitement amongst the scientific community.

Hello once again I'm Patrick I and welcome to season two of 30 animals that made a smarter,

an original podcast from the BBC World Service which reveals what animals have taught us

and how they've inspired some very clever designs. I'd really appreciate you spreading the word

and telling your friends and family all about us. If they've never heard a podcast before

show them how to find a podcast app type 30 animals that made a smarter into the search box

...