Species
|
California market squid, Loligo opalescens |
Life history
(biology, habitat, range) |
Range from southern tip of Baja California, Mexico up through SE AK, from nearshore to deeper pelagic waters
Daylight vertical distribution 100 to 600 m
Terminal spawners in dense aggregations
Lifespan average 4-10 mos.; average age of squid taken commercially is 6 mos.
Nearshore patchy distribution but will aggregate to light
Abundance dramatically affected by El Nino events
Important forage species |
Stock assessment status |
Unknown |
Vulnerability |
None known; Minimum threshold of egg escapement is a model for proxy MSY that is identified in Amendment 10 to Federal CPS FMP |
Protected/declared species interactions |
Unknown |
Gear types |
Purse seine or brail, often with aid of a lightboat |
Gear specifications |
Must have lightboat permit to use lights to attract squid aggregations |
Historic gear |
Lampara round haul net – largely transitioned to larger purse seine |
Associated conservation concerns |
California fishery is on aggregations of adults during spawning periods
Some seiners use chain weights
Minimal bycatch of mostly other CPS species |
Management, commercial |
Jurisdiction(s) |
CA F&G Commission |
FMP |
CA Market squid FMP (and included on Federal CPS FMP) |
Code sections |
Title 14, CCR §§ 53, 149-149.3; FGC §§ 8420-8429.7 |
Restricted access |
Earlier squid permit moratorium enacted 1997
Limited entry under 2005 MSFMP with 3 classes of permits: Market Squid Vessel, Brail, and Lightboat with respective capacity goals of 55, 18, 34
Transferable and non-transferable
Logbook requirement |
TAC |
118,000 tons annually [MSY proxy equivalent to recent highest landings, 2000]
2006 commercial landings weight was 108,346,00 lbs for a value of $26,943,483
(see graphs below) |
Current seasons, size limits, other restrictions |
Season year-round (April 1 through March 31)
Closed to fishing (with exception for live bait) on weekends from noon Fri to noon Sun
Max wattage for lightboats is 30,000 W; must use light shields to reduce horizontal scatter |
Fishery closures/ MPAs |
No commercial fishing for squid in Gulf of Farallons NMS (including for live bait purposes) |
Proposed regulations |
Unknown |
Recreational component |
Squid (live or dead) an important bait food for various recreational fishing
2003 estimate of 0.05% of total tonnage for rec bait purposes based on voluntary reporting |
Social context |
Participation statewide |
Vessel: 85 (11 NT) in 2007; Brail: 20 (0 NT) in 2007; Lightboat: 58 (3 NT) in 2007
FMP estimates approximately 60 dedicated seiners |
Participation by area |
Central summer fishery and southern winter fishery |
Fishing and trade organizations |
California Wetfish Producers Association |
Seafood industry context |
Product forms |
Majority frozen for export to world markets; also fresh or canned
Used for human consumption and as bait for a variety of other fisheries |
Seafood selector status |
N/A |
MSC certification status |
N/A |
Potential for value added |
Unknown |
Miscellaneous |
|
Sources |
DFG Marine Region Market Squid fishery Page http://www.dfg.ca.gov/marine/marketsquid/index.asp
DFG Marine Region Market Squid FMP: http://www.dfg.ca.gov/marine/msfmp/index.asp
DFG Marine Region 2001. California’s Living Marine Resources: A Status Report. CA Market squid http://www.dfg.ca.gov/marine/status/ca_market_squid.pdf |
