Yet this California star didn't come with Oscars or a million-dollar smile. It has 10 tentacles, slippery skin and a big eye. It's the squid. The state Department of Fish and Game's recommendations are three years in the making and subject to approval by the Legislature. The proposed rules, obtained by the Mercury News, would set fishing quotas, limit the number of boat permits and recommend new research and oversight.
Supporters say the changes are long overdue.
Coveted by new markets in China and voracious yuppies gobbling calamari in America, squid has soared past salmon, swordfish and tuna over the past five years to become the top seafood species in California by volume and dollar value. When demand for squid grew, fishing crews from as far away as Washington, Oregon and Alaska steamed into California waters in search of the quick-swimming mollusks. There were no state catch limits, permits, seasons or boundaries, as other fisheries required. The new rules are a rare example of government stepping in to regulate a fishery before it crashes, say supporters. Biologists note that squid are a key link in the Pacific food chain.