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http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news...t-humboldt-squid-on-bcs-coast/article1629423/
In search of the giant Humboldt squid off B.C.’s coast
Researchers will be scouring the waters for something more beastly and exotic than the usual prey
Brennan Clarke
Victoria — From Tuesday's Globe and Mail
Published on Monday, Jul. 05, 2010 9:17PM EDT
Last updated on Monday, Jul. 05, 2010 10:14PM EDT
For most saltwater anglers on B.C.’s West Coast, summer is the season for traditional catches like halibut, hake, rockfish and salmon. But Graham Gillespie will be hitting the water next month in search of a much more beastly and exotic prey – the giant Humboldt squid.
“It’s similar to jigging for a ground fish like a halibut or something,” said Mr. Gillespie, a Nanaimo-based research biologist with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans. “They swim using mantle contractions, so when you catch one it’s not a great running fight, but it’s strong and it’s fairly consistent.”
Found primarily in the waters off the coast of Mexico, Humboldt squid have been migrating steadily northward in recent decades, first appearing off the coast of northern California and Oregon in the 1990s. Unheard of in Canadian waters before 2003, the voracious predators arrived in unprecedented numbers last summer, an invasion that was highlighted by the bizarre beaching of several Humboldt squid near Tofino in early August.
According to the DFO’s State of the Oceans report for 2009, released last month, there were “10 significant stranding events between August and October” on B.C.’s West Coast.
DFO officials, alarmed at the implications for B.C.’s marine ecosystem, handed Mr. Gillespie the task of determining why the creatures are migrating northward and assessing the potential impact on local fish populations.
“Humboldt squid are known to feed on Pacific hake,” the report notes. “Their impact on hake numbers (and perhaps other marine species in summer) in future years could be extensive.”
Tagging along on a DFO vessel used to survey hake populations, Mr. Gillespie and his assistants reeled in about 200 Humboldt squid last summer. When the fishing was good – usually between 10 p.m. and 3 a.m. as the vessel passed through a school of hake – “the guys on the hand line would have caught about 10 giant squids in 20 minutes,” Mr. Gillespie said.
DFO researcher Ken Cook said the mid-water trawls used to sample hake during the survey snagged “tonnes” of Humboldt squid. “In 2007, I think we had six, last year on the same survey we had 80. In 2009 it would be would be impossible to count because we had so many tonnes of them,” he said.
Researchers rely on acoustic imaging techniques to estimate hake populations, but last summer the images were distorted and unusable due to the overabundance of giant squid among the schools of hake, the report notes.
Full-grown Humboldt squid reach lengths of 10 metres or more and weigh in excess of 50 kilograms. However, specimens in B.C. waters have averaged around one metre in length and weighed less than 10 kilos.
Mr. Gillespie and his crew will be back on the water hunting squid later this summer, although there’s no way to predict how many Humboldts will return.
“We’re not sure of the underlying reason for them being here, and if that reason were to shift it’s possible they wouldn’t show up at all,” he said. “It’s a new issue for us and it’s going to take some time to research it.”
John Field, a fisheries biologist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in Santa Cruz, Calif., said Humboldt squid started showing up on the Central California coast “routinely and in greater numbers” in 2003.
Researchers in Santa Cruz are trying to determine if a change in ocean conditions is among the factors enabling giant squid’s range expansion, Mr. Fields said.
Humboldt squid are most at home in low-oxygen waters about 250 metres below the ocean’s surface, a habitat scientists believe has been fundamentally altered by global warming, he said.
“There’s historical data from Southern California and Canada that this ‘oxygen minimal layer’ is getting closer to the surface with time,” he said.
For the moment, Mr. Gillespie’s research is focused on determining what Humboldt squid have been eating. He has dozens of squid stomachs that need to be examined and a limited budget to fund the work.
While giant squid are more likely to feed on hake, sardines, anchovies and other squid, U.S. researchers have documented at least two cases of juvenile salmon in the squids’ stomach contents, he said.
“We’re concerned that, as they move north and the probability of them interacting with salmon increases, salmon could become a larger part of their diet,” Mr. Gillespie said.
Jim's Fishing Charters
www.JimsFishing.com
http://www.youtube.com/user/Sushihunter250
In search of the giant Humboldt squid off B.C.’s coast
Researchers will be scouring the waters for something more beastly and exotic than the usual prey
Brennan Clarke
Victoria — From Tuesday's Globe and Mail
Published on Monday, Jul. 05, 2010 9:17PM EDT
Last updated on Monday, Jul. 05, 2010 10:14PM EDT
For most saltwater anglers on B.C.’s West Coast, summer is the season for traditional catches like halibut, hake, rockfish and salmon. But Graham Gillespie will be hitting the water next month in search of a much more beastly and exotic prey – the giant Humboldt squid.
“It’s similar to jigging for a ground fish like a halibut or something,” said Mr. Gillespie, a Nanaimo-based research biologist with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans. “They swim using mantle contractions, so when you catch one it’s not a great running fight, but it’s strong and it’s fairly consistent.”
Found primarily in the waters off the coast of Mexico, Humboldt squid have been migrating steadily northward in recent decades, first appearing off the coast of northern California and Oregon in the 1990s. Unheard of in Canadian waters before 2003, the voracious predators arrived in unprecedented numbers last summer, an invasion that was highlighted by the bizarre beaching of several Humboldt squid near Tofino in early August.
According to the DFO’s State of the Oceans report for 2009, released last month, there were “10 significant stranding events between August and October” on B.C.’s West Coast.
DFO officials, alarmed at the implications for B.C.’s marine ecosystem, handed Mr. Gillespie the task of determining why the creatures are migrating northward and assessing the potential impact on local fish populations.
“Humboldt squid are known to feed on Pacific hake,” the report notes. “Their impact on hake numbers (and perhaps other marine species in summer) in future years could be extensive.”
Tagging along on a DFO vessel used to survey hake populations, Mr. Gillespie and his assistants reeled in about 200 Humboldt squid last summer. When the fishing was good – usually between 10 p.m. and 3 a.m. as the vessel passed through a school of hake – “the guys on the hand line would have caught about 10 giant squids in 20 minutes,” Mr. Gillespie said.
DFO researcher Ken Cook said the mid-water trawls used to sample hake during the survey snagged “tonnes” of Humboldt squid. “In 2007, I think we had six, last year on the same survey we had 80. In 2009 it would be would be impossible to count because we had so many tonnes of them,” he said.
Researchers rely on acoustic imaging techniques to estimate hake populations, but last summer the images were distorted and unusable due to the overabundance of giant squid among the schools of hake, the report notes.
Full-grown Humboldt squid reach lengths of 10 metres or more and weigh in excess of 50 kilograms. However, specimens in B.C. waters have averaged around one metre in length and weighed less than 10 kilos.
Mr. Gillespie and his crew will be back on the water hunting squid later this summer, although there’s no way to predict how many Humboldts will return.
“We’re not sure of the underlying reason for them being here, and if that reason were to shift it’s possible they wouldn’t show up at all,” he said. “It’s a new issue for us and it’s going to take some time to research it.”
John Field, a fisheries biologist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in Santa Cruz, Calif., said Humboldt squid started showing up on the Central California coast “routinely and in greater numbers” in 2003.
Researchers in Santa Cruz are trying to determine if a change in ocean conditions is among the factors enabling giant squid’s range expansion, Mr. Fields said.
Humboldt squid are most at home in low-oxygen waters about 250 metres below the ocean’s surface, a habitat scientists believe has been fundamentally altered by global warming, he said.
“There’s historical data from Southern California and Canada that this ‘oxygen minimal layer’ is getting closer to the surface with time,” he said.
For the moment, Mr. Gillespie’s research is focused on determining what Humboldt squid have been eating. He has dozens of squid stomachs that need to be examined and a limited budget to fund the work.
While giant squid are more likely to feed on hake, sardines, anchovies and other squid, U.S. researchers have documented at least two cases of juvenile salmon in the squids’ stomach contents, he said.
“We’re concerned that, as they move north and the probability of them interacting with salmon increases, salmon could become a larger part of their diet,” Mr. Gillespie said.
Jim's Fishing Charters
www.JimsFishing.com
http://www.youtube.com/user/Sushihunter250
