# Moby Dick and whale bites

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moby-dick-and-whale-bites/1017416>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [April 23, 2025, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moby-dick-and-whale-bites/1017416 "2025-04-23T19:24:27Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\
**Post date:** [April 24, 2025, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moby-dick-and-whale-bites/1017416/21 "2025-04-24T01:08:53Z")

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For centuries, sailors were sure giant squid existed because of sucker marks on Sperm Whales and large squid bits in the stomachs of dead whales. There is a giant squid in Moby Dick. A sailor on watch cries out “A hump like a snow hill! It is Moby Dick! The gold coin is mine!” It turns out to be a surfaced giant squid. The squid is totally passive. This confuses everybody.

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**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\
**Post date:** [April 24, 2025, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moby-dick-and-whale-bites/1017416/22 "2025-04-24T15:38:09Z")

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> [@Whack-a-Mole](#):
>
> I think the damage you see on the whale’s head below is from numerous battles it has had with squid:

Quoth AI:

_“Yes, giant squid do leave scars on whales, specifically sperm whales, through their strong suckers and sharp teeth. These scars are often circular and can be quite extensive on older sperm whales. The [American Museum of Natural History (AMNH)](https://www.amnh.org/explore/videos/exhibits/the-squid-and-the-whale-evidence-for-an-epic-encounter) has even documented these marks as evidence of conflicts between sperm whales and giant squid. The squid’s tentacles lash out against the whale’s head, leaving the characteristic sucker marks”_

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