A squishy squid has some chemical tricks that help it hold on to its tough, rigid beak without hurting itself.
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Squids look soft and squishy — and for the most part, they are. Yet a squid’s beak — the rigid part of its mouth — is hard enough to snap a fish’s spine with just one bite.
Biting a bone in two requires considerable force. But how can the squid’s squishy soft mouth hold on to the beak without cutting itself against the beak’s rigid edge? Somehow, the soft tissues in the squid’s mouth must resist the force generated by the strong chomp.