Tighter rules make for abundant squid catches

Sport fishermen are having the time of their lives this season landing bucket loads of squid.

Squid make a mouth-watering meal when stuffed with breadcrumbs, garlic, olives and capers together with their own tentacles and cooked in a stew.

Charles Azzopardi, of Azzopardi Fisheries of St Paul's Bay, attributes the abundant catches to the tighter control of deep sea trawling within the five-mile limit from shore and the implementation of 25-mile conservation zone regulations following the implementation of EU rules.

"Braving the cold night temperatures, sport fishermen have landed excellent catches of squid.

"Fished after nightfall, squid are drawn to colourful fish-like lures dangled off boats.

"In order to entice small fish that are the preferred feed for squid, a strong light powered by a car battery is directed at the sea from the fishing boat. The small fry attract the attention of squid that pounce on them. "The best fishing grounds for squid are to the north of the island, just off Cirkewwa, around Comino and between Mgarr and Qala in Gozo," Mr Azzopardi explained.

Fishing enthusiasts are often noticed casting their lures with reel-rods from well-illuminated jetties as Cirkewwa and Mgarr.

In his book Sea Fishes And Invertebrates Of The Maltese Islands And The Mediterranean Sea (2002, Progress Press, Valletta), Lawson Wood notes that the calamari squid growing over 75 cm is the most common squid found in the Mediterranean. "The female lays about 20,000 eggs in pale white or grey gelatinous string attached to the sea floor or hard object," Mr Wood writes.

The eggs hatch between June and July.

Squid have an effective defence mechanism by means of which they eject a cloud of deep black ink when threatened in order to confuse their predators as they make a hasty escape.