Table 1: Stock status determination for Gould's Squid
Jurisdiction |
Commonwealth, New South Wales, Tasmania, Victoria |
Stock |
Southern Australian
(CTS, GABTS, SSJF, TSF, WDTF) |
Stock status |
|
Sustainable |
Indicators |
Catch rates, total catch |
CTS = Commonwealth Trawl Sector; GABTS = Great Australian Bight Trawl Sector (Commonwealth); SSJF = Southern Squid Jig Fishery (Commonwealth); TSF = Tasmanian Scalefish Fishery; WDTF = Western Deepwater Trawl Fishery (Commonwealth)
A single biological stock of Gould’s Squid is assumed throughout southern Australian waters. Genetic studies are limited, but support this hypothesis1. Analysis of chemical elements in statoliths has also shown that some Gould’s Squid caught in Victorian waters and the Great Australian Bight were hatched in various regions off southern Australia2. Status is reported at the biological stock level.
Southern Australian biological stock
No formal stock assessment is available for the Gould’s Squid biological stock in Australia. Gould’s Squid is short lived (less than 1 year), spawns multiple times during its life, and displays highly variable growth rates, and size and age at maturity1. These characteristics mean that the population can rapidly increase in biomass during favourable environmental conditions; it is therefore less susceptible to becoming recruitment overfished than longer-lived species. However, as the fishery targets individuals less than 1 year of age, there is potential for the population to be recruitment overfished if insufficient animals survive long enough to reproduce. The total fishing effort in the Southern Squid Jig Fishery (Commonwealth) decreased markedly from the peak fishing effort of 15 600 jig hours in 1997, to a historical low of 617 jig hours in 2010, although effort increased to moderate levels in 2011 to 2013. Changes in fishing effort largely reflect economic factors, rather than changes in Gould’s Squid catch rates; high operating costs and low prices are the main drivers of the contraction of the Southern Squid Jig Fishery (Commonwealth)3. Fishing effort in the Commonwealth Trawl Sector and Great Australian Bight Trawl Sector has also substantially decreased since 20014,5. The above evidence indicates that the current level of fishing pressure is unlikely to cause the stock to become recruitment overfished6.
Combined total catch since 2000 has been below 3000 tonnes (t) (Figure 2), which is well below the historical peak of 7914 t taken by foreign jig fishing vessels in 1979–80. The nominal catch rates from the Commonwealth Trawl Sector and the Tasmanian Scalefish Fishery have been stable over time7,8. Depletion analysis also suggests that the stock has not become recruitment overfished as a result of jigging or demersal trawling pressure in past seasons3. The above evidence indicates that the biomass of this stock is unlikely to be recruitment overfished6.
On the basis of the evidence provided above, the biological stock is classified as a sustainable stock.
Table 2: Gould's Squid biology1
Longevity and maximum size |
1 year; 350–400 mm ML |
Maturity (50%) |
6-9 months; 170–300 mm ML |
ML = mantle length
Figure 1: Distribution of reported commercial catch of Gould’s Squid in Australian waters, 2013 (calendar year)
Table 3: Main features and statistics for Gould's Squid fisheries in Australia, 2013 (calendar year)
Jurisdiction |
Commonwealth |
Tasmania |
Fishing methods |
Commercial |
Automatic squid jigging machines |
✓ |
✓ |
Hand jigging |
✓ |
✓ |
Trawling |
✓ |
|
Recreationala |
Rod and line (squid jigs) |
|
✓ |
Indigenousb |
|
|
Unknown |
Management methods |
Commercial |
Limited entry |
✓ |
✓ |
Vessel restrictions |
✓ |
✓ |
Effort limits |
✓ (SSJF only) |
|
Spatial closures |
|
✓ |
Trigger limits9 |
✓ |
|
Temporal closures |
|
✓ |
Recreationala |
Bag limits |
|
✓ |
Gear restrictions |
|
✓ |
Temporal closures |
|
✓ |
Spatial closures |
|
✓ |
Indigenousb |
Bag limits |
|
✓ |
Active vessels |
|
51 in CTS
6 in GABTS
8 in SSJF
2 in WDTF |
7 in TSFc |
Catch |
Commerciald |
663 t in CTS
61 t in GABTS
166 t in SSJF
<0.1 t in WDTF |
976 t in TSF |
Recreationala |
|
37 t in 2007–08 |
Indigenousb |
|
Unknown |
Markets |
Domestic |
✓ |
✓ |
Export |
✓ |
|
CTS = Commonwealth Trawl Sector; GABTS = Great Australian Bight Trawl Sector (Commonwealth); SSJF = Southern Squid Jig Fishery (Commonwealth); TSF = Tasmanian Scalefish Fishery; WDTF = Western Deepwater Trawl Fishery (Commonwealth)
a The Australian Government does not manage recreational fishing in Commonwealth waters. Recreational fishing in Commonwealth waters is managed by the state or territory immediately adjacent to those waters, under its management regulations.
b The Australian Government does not manage noncommercial Indigenous fishing in Commonwealth waters, with the exception of the Torres Strait. In general, noncommercial Indigenous fishing in Commonwealth waters is managed by the state or territory immediately adjacent to those waters.
c Vessels allowed to operate in the Tasmanian Scalefish Fishery need an automatic squid jig licence to operate more than four automatic jig machines. In 2013, squid were recorded in the landings of 28 vessels, but more than 99 per cent of the catch was from 7 vessels that hold automatic squid jig licences.
d Approximately 35 t (Great Australian Bight Trawl Sector) and 5 t (Commonwealth Trawl Sector) reported as Southern Calamari in 2013 could be misidentified Gould's Squid. The Australian Fisheries Management Authority is working to clarify this issue.
Figure 2: Commercial catch of Gould’s Squid in Australian waters, 2000 to 2013 (calendar years)
Note: Catch includes Commonwealth Trawl Sector, Southern Squid Jig Fishery, Great Australian Bight Trawl Sector and Tasmanian Scalefish Fishery.
- Jig fishing methods are highly selective. An ecological risk assessment for the effect of fishing was completed for the Southern Squid Jig Fishery (Commonwealth) in 2006 and did not identify any indicators of threat to the environment from jig fishing10.
- There can be a substantial level of bycatch in the trawl sector fisheries. In 2006, mandatory requirements for otter trawls to use 90 mm square-mesh codend panels were introduced to reduce the catch of small species and juvenile fish11.
- Interactions also occur with animals protected under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999, including marine mammals (dolphins, seals and sea lions), seabirds, some shark species and seahorses and pipefish (syngnathids). These interactions are reported quarterly by the Australian Fisheries Management Authority12 and on-board observer programs are used to validate the reporting in commercial logbooks.
- In 2007, the South East Trawl Fishing Industry Association released an industry code of practice that aims to minimise interactions with fur seals, as well as addressing the environmental impacts of the fishery more generally13. Operators have developed other mitigation protocols that have further reduced seal mortalities, including using breakaway ties that keep the net closed until it is below depths that seals regularly inhabit, adopting techniques to close the trawl opening during recovery to minimise opportunities for seals to enter the net, switching off gantry lights that are not required during night trawling to avoid attracting bait species and seals, and dumping offal only when the boat is not engaged in deploying or hauling gear13.
- In 2011, AFMA mandated individual vessel seabird management plans14. The seabird action plans are used in the Commonwealth Trawl Sector to mitigate the impacts of trawling on seabirds. Seabird mitigation measures include warp deflectors (‘pinkys’), bird bafflers (a system of ropes and PVC piping that protects the warp cable) and seal excluder devices.
- The effects of trawl fishing on the marine environment are assessed through an environmental risk assessment and risk management framework and mitigated through spatial closures, and the implementation of bycatch and discard workplans in the Commonwealth Trawl Sector and Great Australian Bight Trawl Sector fisheries.
- The Gould’s Squid biological stock can vary significantly in abundance between years, and environmental conditions are widely acknowledged as influences on larval and juvenile survival2. Environmental factors such as sea temperature and nutrient concentrations have also been linked to growth rate, particularly for females1. Gould’s Squid is a fast-growing species with a short life span1, and the stock is able to respond rapidly when conditions are favourable. However, at any given time, the southern Australian stock comprises a single cohort of less than 1 year of age. This means that prolonged detrimental environmental conditions have the potential to reduce abundance for more than a year. Therefore, any detrimental environmental impact on recruitment has the potential to cause drastic impacts on abundance.
a Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences
b Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania