A review of the development of Chinese distant-water squid jigging fisheries

China has developed a major fishing fleet for oceanic squid since 1989, currently having more than 400 squid jigging boats with an annual catch of 250-300 thousand metric tonnes and accounting for about one-sixth of the global oceanic squid production. The main fishing target species include Ommastrephes bartramii in the northwestern Pacific, Illex argentinus in the southwestern Atlantic, Dosidicus gigas in the southeastern Pacific, Sthenoteuthis oualaniensis in the northwestern Indian, and Todarodes pacficus in the Sea of Japan. The ommastrephidae squid is an opportunist species and vulnerable to environmental fluctuations, making its abundance difficult to assess, forecast and manage. This calls for sharing of scientific information worldwide for better understanding and management of squid fisheries. This study reviews biology, fisheries and resource status of important commercial oceanic squid for the Chinese squid jigging fisheries with a focus on recent literatures published in China. (c) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.