Welcome to the Squid Fishing Guide Victoria. Squid is truly a unique and magnificent creature that can be targeted from piers, jetties, rock walls and out in the open sea by kayak or Boat. They are an ambush predator and master of disguise. However, they taste brilliant and are loads of fun to target. They introduce a whole new dynamic to fishing and have provided anglers with an explosion of jig types of weights and colours to choose from. Squid is an all-year-round prospect more active at dawn and dusk. We find them to be most active in clear waters during sunrise. Squid are measured by their hood. They vary in size, but fishing from Western Port and Port Philip Bay most catches will have a hood size between 22 to 45 cm.
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Squid Facts & Catch Limits
- Their scientific name is Sepioteuthis australis.
- There is no size limit for Squid.
- Bag limit of 10 squid per person. This includes octopuses and cuttlefish.
- Squid school up in big numbers.
- The most common catches are between 25cm and 40cm hoods. They can grow over 50cm, which is considered a magical mark for anglers.
- Squid fish better in clear water conditions
Best time to catch Squid ( Seasons )
In Victoria, Squid can be caught all year round. However, they are more active in warmer months ideally between Summer and Autumn. They are often best targeted at Dawn/Dusk and on tide changes. In the warmer months, you catch them in volumes in cooler months you won’t catch as many but they tend to be bigger size catches.
How to catch squid
Watch our detailed video guide on how to catch squid for beginners.
The wonderful thing about squid is that you can catch them on a pier, jetty, beach, boat kayak or jetski. They’re widely accessible and you don’t need sophisticated gear or techniques to catch them. Squid love to reside in shallow weedy and reefy areas. You can generally identify these in clear calm conditions by looking over the side of your boat or kayak or walking along piers and jetties. They use these areas for cover and to lay their eggs. They are an aggressive ambush predator that school up in big numbers. A unique-looking species that’s fun to catch and great to eat.
We would highly recommend reading our detailed guide on How to catch squid around Melbourne. One method to catch squid includes using a squid spike ( as shown below ) and placing a full piece of flesh strip bait such as pilchard, mackerel or silver whiting, this can be slowly retrieved or suspended under a float.
However, we generally target squid with squid jigs. If you’re on a boat or kayak stay drifting and cover ground. The temptation when getting a hit is to strike, however, with squid fishing, this will work against you. When you feel a weight on your line lift gently and reel in the squid. Target shallow weedy areas they can be sounded up if you’re on a boat or kayak. Squid jigs can be worked by simply casting your jig out and retrieving it back very slowly with some erratic pauses and lifts.
Now when it comes to a rod and reel combo there are many EGI rod combos on the market. They’re generally light rods between either 8 or 9 feet in length and 3-5 kilo capacity. These rods generally have a soft action tip so you don’t pull squid jugs and allow for great casting distance of jigs. Coupled with a 2500 or 3000-size reel spooled with a 10-pound braid.
The best squid jigs fishing in Victoria
Click here to read our detailed guide on the best squid jigs in 2022. Squid jigs come in a whole range of colours and patterns. various sizes ( 2.5, 3.0, 3.5, 4.0 grams ), and sinking rates. Some squid jigs come with rattles, reflective cloth, and UV shine. The range of jigs’ colours and prices is almost endless. Every day is different the best approach is to have a range of colours and sizes to switch between on any given day. Often starting with a 3-gram size in glow white, dark red and black colours then working your way up or down the scale.
The best way to work squid jigs is to cast them and let them slowly sink to the bottom. Most squid will take jigs as they are sinking or worked on the bottom. Then every 5 to 10 seconds do some erratic lifts followed by another 5 to 10-second pause. Retrieve this process and in time you will catch a good volume of squid.
Some great options include
- Yamashita Egi Oh live
- Shimano Egixile
- Inku
- Daiwa Emeraldas
- Rui
- Clicks
- Evergreen
Best locations to catch squid in Victoria
You can catch many healthy squids around
- Mornington
- Queenscliff
- Mount Martha
- Point Cook
- Corio Bay
- Rye pier
- Port Welshpool long pier
- Frankston pier
- Sorrento pier
- Blairgowrie pier
- Flinders pier
- Portsea piers
- St Leonards
- Clifton Springs
- Avalon
Watch how to catch and cook squid
You can obtain a free Victorian recreational fishing guide from the Victorian Fisheries Authorities
Thank you for reading our Squid Fishing Guide Victoria. If you feel this fish species guide is missing key information or needs any corrections. T
hen please let us know by emailing our team at enquiries@fishingmad.com.au with specific details in the email. Thank you