Southern Calamari (Squid)
Jetty / HarbourHugely popular target around jetty pylons and weed beds year-round, with peaks in autumn and spring. Target at night under lights with squid jigs worked slowly over the weed. Ammo Jetty is the Perth mecca for squid.
Overview
Southern calamari are one of Perth's most popular fishing targets, with crowds of squidders lining jetties from August through February. The combination of relaxing fishing, simple technique, and outstanding eating quality makes squid fishing a favourite for families and experienced anglers alike. It's also one of the few fisheries that's genuinely better at night.
Identification
Squid, calamari, southern reef squid
A broad oval mantle with fins running almost the full length of the body — that continuous fin skirt is the quick way to separate southern calamari from arrow squid, which have short triangular fins at the tail end only. The mantle is thick and firm and the colour shifts from mottled red-brown to near-translucent white depending on the squid's mood. Don't confuse them with cuttlefish (broad and flat, an internal bone, a fringe of small fins running the body length) or with octopus. Arrow squid are caught off the same jetties and are perfectly edible, just softer and less prized.
How to Catch
N/A — squid jigs only. Some anglers use a prawn or fish strip under a float, but jigs are far more effective.
Squid jigs in size 2.5–3.5 do the job. Natural browns and oranges (Yamashita Egi-OH, Yo-Zuri Aurie-Q) by day; bright pinks, oranges and glow-back jigs for fishing under jetty lights at night. Size up to 3.5 in deeper water or current, drop to 2.5 over shallow weed. A keen-eyed squidder carries both day and night colours.
Tie the squid jig directly to 6–8lb fluorocarbon leader with a loop knot. No sinker needed. For deeper water or current, use a paternoster setup with a small sinker below the jig to get it down.
Work squid jigs slowly over weed beds near jetty pylons. Cast out, let the jig sink to just above the weed, then use slow, gentle lifts and drops to work it back. Squid follow the jig and strike on the drop — watch your line for a gentle weight change. At night, fish under jetty lights where baitfish gather and squid patrol.
Night fishing under jetty lights is most productive, especially from dusk to about 10pm. Incoming tide and new moon phases are best. The season runs August through February, peaking in October–November.
Up to 2kg mantle, commonly 200–500g
Year-round
Size & Growth
A good jetty calamari has a mantle of 20–30 cm and weighs 300–600 g. A big one runs to about 40 cm of mantle and heads toward the 2 kg headline size, usually late in the season. They live fast — roughly a year, sometimes a little more — growing quickly, spawning on the weed beds and then dying, which is why size is so seasonal: small squid early, big ones through spring and into summer. There's no legal minimum, but very small squid are barely worth cleaning and are better left for a couple of months.
Diet & Habitat
Calamari hunt small fish, prawns and crustaceans, shooting out two long tentacles to grab prey and holding it with the eight shorter arms. They sit over seagrass and broken reef in 1–10 m, usually right on the weed edge, and move under jetty lights at night to ambush the baitfish that gather there. In WA they're a temperate species found from about the Abrolhos south and right along the south coast, with Cockburn Sound, Warnbro, Shoalwater, Geographe Bay and every metro jetty holding them. They spawn on shallow weed beds, which is exactly why the best jigging is directly over seagrass.
WA Size & Bag Limits
| Minimum size | No minimum size |
|---|---|
| Bag limit | 15 |
| Counts toward | Combined across squid, cuttlefish and octopus (Family Cephalopoda). A boat limit of 30 applies with at least two licensed fishers aboard. |
No minimum size. Daily bag limit: 15, combined across squid, cuttlefish and octopus (Family Cephalopoda) per fisher. Note a boat limit of 30 applies when at least two licensed fishers are aboard.
Eating Quality
Yes — squid is arguably Perth's best seafood catch, full stop. Sweet, tender white mantle with a clean flavour and none of the ammonia note you get off tired supermarket squid. Clean the tube, pull the skin off, score the inside in a diamond pattern, and cook it either very fast or very slow — anything in between turns it to rubber. Fast means salt-and-pepper calamari, a hot grill, or a flash through a wok; slow means an hour in a tomato braise. A really fresh one is excellent as sashimi. Bigger squid have a thicker, chewier mantle and suit braising better; small ones fry beautifully. Don't bin the wings and tentacles — they're the best part. Use a squid spike for a quick kill and cleaner flesh. It freezes only passably; the texture toughens, so freeze it raw in portions and use it for cooked dishes.
Perth Tips
Ammo Jetty is the mecca — get there early on a Friday evening to secure a spot. Bring a squid spike for a quick, humane kill and better eating quality. Use a bright headlamp angled at the water to spot squid following your jig.