Atlantic Mackerel (Scomber scombrus)

• Atlantic mackerel are quite abundant, and overfishing is not occurring.
• Atlantic mackerel was overfished in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Managers phased out foreign fishing and implemented annual quotas to manage the U.S. fishing fleets, and the stock has rebounded to very healthy levels.
• Mackerel is rich in omega-3 fatty acids and is an excellent source of selenium, niacin, and vitamins B6 and B12. For more on nutrition, see Nutrition Facts. (USDA)
• Atlantic mackerel is not highly desired by most American consumers but is popular in foreign countries. The United Kingdom and Norway have the largest fisheries for Atlantic mackerel.

Sustainability Status

Biomass: Atlantic mackerel population estimates are well above target levels, at 257% above the biomass needed to support maximum sustainable yield (B_MSY).
Overfishing: No
Overfished: No
Fishing and habitat: Atlantic mackerel are primarily harvested with mid-water trawl gear. This type of gear does not typically contact the bottom and therefore has little effect on habitat.
Bycatch: The Atlantic mackerel fishery has little or no interactions with sea turtles but interactions with marine mammals have been recorded.
Aquaculture: There is currently no commercial aquaculture of Atlantic mackerel in the U.S.

Science and Management

There are both commercial and recreational fisheries for Atlantic mackerel throughout most of their range. In the U.S., commercial landings are taken primarily between January and May in southern New England and Mid-Atlantic coastal waters, and between May and December in the Gulf of Maine. U.S. recreational catches occur mainly between April and October. The U.S. fishery is managed using annual quotas under the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council's Atlantic Mackerel, Squid, and Butterfish Fishery Management Plan.

The western Atlantic stock is also fished by Canadian fishing fleets. Canadian commercial landings have typically been taken off Nova Scotia, in the Gulf of St Lawrence, and Newfoundland between May and November. These fisheries are managed by the Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans.

Life History and Habitat

Life history, including information on the habitat, growth, feeding, and reproduction of a species, is important because it affects how a fishery is managed.

• Geographic range: Atlantic mackerel are found on both sides of the North Atlantic Ocean, including the Baltic Sea. In the eastern Atlantic, their range includes the Mediterranean and the Black seas; in the western Atlantic, they range from Labrador to North Carolina.
• Habitat: Abundant in cold and temperate shelf areas. More?
• Life span: 20 years
• Food: Mackerel are opportunistic feeders and prey most heavily on crustaceans such as copepods, krill, and shrimp. They also eat squid, and some fish and ascidians.
• Growth rate: Rapid
• Maximum size: 16.5 inches in length and 2.2 pounds in weight
• Reaches reproductive maturity: Beginning at age 2 and usually complete by age 3.
• Reproduction: An Atlantic mackerel between 12 and 17 inches full length may have between 285,000 and 1.98 million eggs. Mackerel spawn between 5 and 7 batches of eggs per year. Eggs generally float in the surface water and hatch in 4 to 7.5 days, depending on water temperature.
• Spawning season: There are two major spawning groups in the population: a southern group that spawns primarily in the Mid-Atlantic Bight during April and May, and a northern group that spawns in the Gulf of St. Lawrence in June and July.
• Spawning grounds: The southern spawning group spawns primarily in the Mid-Atlantic Bight, and the northern group spawns in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Most spawn in the shoreward half of continental shelf waters within 10 to 30 miles of the shore, although some spawning extends to the shelf edge and beyond.
• Migrations: Both spawning groups of Atlantic mackerel migrate extensively to and from spawning and summering grounds.
• Predators: Several fish prey on mackerel. They are preyed upon heavily by whales, dolphins, spiny dogfish, silver hake, white hake, weakfish, goosefish, Atlantic cod, bluefish, and striped bass. They are also eaten by swordfish, red hake, Atlantic bonito, bluefin tuna, blue shark, porbeagle, sea lamprey, and shortfin mako and thresher sharks.
• Commercial or recreational interest: Both
• Distinguishing characteristics: Atlantic mackerel are iridescent blue green above with a silvery white underbelly. They have twenty to thirty wavy black bars that run across the top half of their body, and there is a narrow dark streak that runs along each side from pectoral to tail fin below the bars. Their body is spindle shaped, tapering at both ends. They have two separate large dorsal fins which are gray or dusky. The pectoral fins are black or dusky at the base, and the caudal fin is gray or dusky.

Role in the Ecosystem

Additional Information

Market name: Mackerel
Vernacular names: Common Mackerel, Boston Mackerel, Caballa

Biomass

Biomass refers to the amount of Atlantic mackerel in the ocean. Scientists cannot collect and weigh every single fish to determine biomass, so they use mathematical models to estimate it instead. These biomass estimates can help determine if a stock is being fished too heavily or if it may be able to tolerate more fishing pressure. Managers can then make appropriate changes in the regulations of the fishery.

Spawning biomass peaked in 1972 at 1.7 million metric tons but declined until 1976. The Atlantic mackerel stock collapsed in the late 1970s. Spawning biomass has increased steadily since 1978, and the stock recovered in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Spawning biomass reached a record high of 2.3 million metric tons in 2004, well above the target biomass of 644,000 metric tons.

Landings

Landings refer to the amount of catch that is brought to land. Atlantic mackerel were heavily fished by foreign fleets during the late 1960s-early 1970s. Total landings averaged 350,000 metric tons during 1970-1976 but decreased to less than 50,000 metric tons during 1978-1984. Landings in Canadian waters remained relatively stable at an average of 24,000 metric tons during 1968-2000, where landings in U.S. waters increased during 1985-1991 to an average of 76,000 metric tons, with the advent of a joint venture fishery in the Mid-Atlantic region. Recently, both U.S. and Canadian landings have increased due to improved market demand. U.S. landings increased from 5,646 metric tons in 2000 to 53,724 metric tons in 2004; Canadian increased from 13,383 metric tons in 2000 to 51,444 metric tons in 2004, declining to 41,234 metric tons in 2005.

U.S. recreational landings averaged 1,344 metric tons from 1990 to 2000, declined to only 467 metric tons in 2004, and then increased again to 1,042 metric tons in 2005.

Biomass and Landings

Biomass and landings data can sometimes be used to detect trends in a fishery. They may influence each other, and factors such as changes in management measures, fishing effort, market preferences, or environmental conditions may impact landings and biomass as well.

In western Atlantic, the Atlantic mackerel stock was overfished from heavy foreign fishing in the 1960s and1970s. Managers phased out foreign fisheries as the U.S. fishery grew and implemented annual quotas. The rate of harvest has remained low since 1992, and biomass has steadily increased since 1978, peaking at 2.3 million metric tons in 2004. Landings have increased recently due to improved market demand. The stock is not currently overfished and overfishing is not occurring.

Data sources:
Biomass and landings from Status of Fishery Resources off the Northeastern U.S. - Atlantic mackerel

Important Dates

1977-1979 – Fishery management plan (FMP) for Atlantic mackerel is completed and approved
1983 – Management of Atlantic mackerel, squid, and butterfish fisheries is consolidated under a single FMP
1984 – Amendment 1 to the FMP revises the mortality rate for Atlantic mackerel
1986 – Amendment 2 to the FMP equates the fishing year with the calendar year, implements the framework adjustment process, and converts the expiration of fishing permits from indefinite to annual
1991 – Amendment 3 establishes overfishing definition for Atlantic mackerel
1991 – Amendment 4 limits the activity of directed foreign fishing and joint venture transfers to foreign vessels and allows for specification of Optimum Yield for Atlantic mackerel for up to three years
1996 – Amendment 5 institutes a dealer and vessel reporting system and an operator permitting system; expands the management unit to include all Atlantic mackerel, Loligo and Illex squid, and butterfish under U.S. jurisdiction
1997 – Amendment 7 establishes consistency among the FMPs in the Northeast region of the U.S. relative to vessel permitting, replacement, and upgrade criteria
1998 – Amendment 8 brings the FMP into compliance with new and revised National Standards and other requirements of the Sustainable Fisheries Act; adds a framework adjustment procedure
2001 – Framework 1 creates a quota set-aside for conducting scientific research
2008 – Amendment 9 allows for multi-year specifications for up to 3 years; prohibits bottom trawling by MSB-permitted vessels in Lydonia and Oceanographer Canyons

Notes and Links

General Information:
Status of Fishery Resources off the Northeastern U.S. - Atlantic mackerel

Atlantic Mackerel, Scomber scombrus, Life History and Habitat Characteristics

Fishery Management:
History of the Atlantic Mackerel, Squid, and Butterfish FMP

Stock Assessments:
2006 Atlantic Mackerel Stock Assessment