I know I keep talking about the incredible unpredictability of squids, but it's an endlessly fascinating topic! Every time you think you've got them figured out, they surprise you--and I'd say that goes for pretty much all squid species.

Of course, I'm particularly familiar with the Humboldt squid's propensity for perplexity. For a while, they were so abundant off California that sport fishermen were reeling them in as fast as they could throw jigs in the water. Now, the squid have disappeared.

This summer I got mail from a researcher in Brisbane, Australia, who wanted to come to California to work on them, and I had to regretfully inform her that the Humboldt squid has pulled a vanishing act. Maybe they'll be back next year. Or ten years from now.

But Humboldts in California are hardly unique. Squids make a habit of perplexing people all around the globe. For example, in Melbourne, just around the corner* from Brisbane, folks are catching southern calamari squid (Sepietuthis australis) hand over fist right now.



The writer of this piece in the Weekly Times shares some very astute observations about catching squid:

The reality of squidding is that when they are on, the catching is easy. The art is in catching squid when they are reluctant to attack a jig.

There are days when squid bite best at first or last light. On other days, a tide change could be the premium time, or maybe when the water is clearing on a flood tide. I have often stumbled on the right combination of colour and size jig when these conditions are met.

But at the height of the calamari squid season, from now until late October, time of day is not always relevant. When the squid are on and you have clear water, the chances are you will catch calamari.

The gist of this passage could just as well have been written about Humboldt squid, or, I suspect, a number of other squid species. When they're on, you can catch as many as you please. But when they're finicky, there's no telling what will work. Some fishermen swear by the phase of the moon. One of my friends sings a little fishy song while he's waiting to hook up. Though he claims it attracts squid, I suspect it may be more effective at simply passing the time.

Several colleagues I admire, and one in particular, are laboring towards answers to the question of why and when Humboldt squid appear and disappear. While I eagerly await their discoveries, I admit that some part of me also revels in the wild variability that we've only partly been able to understand.


* Okay, so it's a big corner.