Atlantic trap or net-caught longfin squid

The primary types of squid caught in the United States are Atlantic longfin squid, Atlantic shortfin squid, and Pacific market squid. Squid grow and reproduce quickly, making them less susceptible to overfishing than many species. Longfin squid grow and reproduce rapidly, making them less susceptible to overfishing than many fish species. Their population levels are currently high. Atlantic trap or net-caught longfin squid and Pacific market squid are better choices than shortfin squid, because shortfin squid’s stock status is unknown, and the U.S. fishery consists primarily of bottom trawling. Squid is caught using a variety of gear types, including traps, nets, trawls and roundhaul gear, which encircles schools of squid in a net. Traps and roundhaul gear result in a relatively small amount of bycatch (capture of non-target species) and habitat damage, whereas trawls can damage habitats by removing or covering animal and plant life. The Atlantic longfin squid fishery is mainly composed of small-mesh bottom trawlers, but during the spring and summer the squid are also fished using traps and nets.