滑川のほたるいか Namerikawa's Hotaruika

For those of you who don't live in Toyama, and weren't with me at an ungodly hour early Wednesday morning-- any guesses as to what that iridescent blue is in the above pictures? I'll give you a few hints:

It required getting up at 1am, driving an hour, putting on life-jackets, and getting on-board a boat. It wasn't nearly as cold as it looks, but we were prepared for anything!

And it involved fishing boats but we were on a sight-seeing boat. Our boat pulled up next to these guys and when they turned off all the lights, we got the blue show as seen above. Any ideas what makes that brilliant iridescent blue in the middle of the night that draws tourists from all over the world?

Firefly Squid--known in Japan as hotaruika! But listed on wikipedia as Sparkling Enope Squid.
Toyama's deep bay provides a perfect environment for these little squid. The females are harvested between March-June after they have come to the surface to lay their eggs. We were told during the tour that they only live a year, so no harm in catching them before they die anyway, right?

Maybe some of you are asking...why catch them?

Duh...Japanese people love to eat them! They are a delicacy! Boil them up, add a little sweet mustard for dipping, and they are a real treat for some people. I've eaten them, but only to be polite. But in reality, this is how I really feel about them...