Fishery biology of jumbo flying squid Dosidicus gigas off Costa Rica Dome

The jumbo flying squid (Dosidicus gigas) population was surveyed with the help of Chinese squid jigging vessels off the Costa Rica Dome (4°–11°N, 90°–100°W) in 2009 and 2010. The daily catch of D. gigas in the two survey cruises ranged from 0 to 5.5 t and was mostly obtained from the areas bounded by 6°–9°N and 91°–94°W and by 6°30′-7°30′N and 96°–97°W. The sea surface temperature in the areas yielding the most catch ranged from 27.5 to 29°C. The sex ratio of the total catch was 3.75:1 (female: male). The mantle length of the squid ranged from 211 to 355 mm (male) and from 204 to 429 mm (female) with an average of 297.9 and 306.7 mm, respectively. In the relationship of the mantle length (mm) and body weight (g) of the squid, there was no significant difference between sexes. The female and male were at a similar maturity, and most individuals are maturing or have matured with a few females being spent. The size (mantle length) and age at the first sexual maturity were 297 mm and 195 d in females, and less than 211 mm and 130 d in males, respectively. Most of the sampled stomachs (70.6%) had no food remains. The major preys of the squids were fish, cephalopods and crustaceans, with the most abundant Myctophum orientale and D. gigas. The preys in more than 65% of the non-empty sampled stomachs evidenced the cannibalism of D. gigas. The results improved current understanding of the fishery biology of D. gigas off the Costa Rica Dome, which may facilitate the assessment and management of relative fishery resources.