Falklands : Prospects Good for Illex and Loligo in the FICZ
Submitted by Falkland Islands News Network (Juanita Brock) 10.05.2006 (Article Archived on 24.05.2006)
Statistics are way up from this time last year.
PROSPECTS GOOD FOR ILLEX and LOLIGO IN THE FICZ
By J. Brock (FINN)
The Falkland Islands Fisheries Department shows an exciting rise in the catch rates of Loligo and Illex Squid, with March figures showing a total metric tonnage of 26,579 for Illex and 13,716 for Loligo.
Both species are being caught in the north and west of the Falklands near the edge of the FICZ and FOCZ.
During the lifecycle of Illex, lasting one year, the species must migrate from where they spawned off the coast of Brazil through the Argentine EEZ and into the Falklands Zone. This year there have been reports of fishing vessels catching as much as 146 tonnes in one night. Catches are still good but towards the end of the season the spawning stock leaves the zone.
Indications are that the spawning stock have already begun t migrate north in that fisheries observers report the majority of squid caught are female.
First season Loligo, which is generally smaller than that caught in the second season, has proven to be in abundance, with more caught this year than during the same time last year. Unlike stocks of Loligo, Illex only have one season, which theoretically ends on 31 May each year.
It is hoped that recruitment for Illex for next season will show a recovery trend from the disastrous seasons of 2004 and 2005. For the Illex, 40% spawning rate is ideal but this is difficult to achieve due to the fact that it is a migrating stock and it cannot be accurately monitored when it is out of the zone.
Loligo can be monitored because its life cycle is spent in Falklands’ waters.
As said in the last Fisheries Committee meeting, there was no joint scientific cruise with Argentina this year. This valuable cruise is needed for stock and biomass assessment. It is hoped that the value of the data for both Argentina and the Falklands will outweigh the desire for petty harassment. Older methods of stock assessment are being used and could be used next season.
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