Mackerel is a common name applied to a number of different species ofpelagic fish, mostly from the familyScombridae. They are found in both temperate and tropical seas, mostly living along the coast or offshore in the oceanic environment.
Mackerel species typically have deeply forked tails and vertical "tiger-like" stripes on their backs with aniridescent green-blue quality.[2][3] Many are restricted in their distribution ranges and live in separate populations orfish stocks based on geography. Some stocksmigrate in largeschools along the coast to suitable spawning grounds, where they spawn in fairly shallow waters. After spawning they return the way they came in smaller schools to suitable feeding grounds, often near an area ofupwelling. From there they may move offshore into deeper waters and spend the winter in relative inactivity. Other stocks migrate across oceans.
Smaller mackerel areforage fish for larger predators, including larger mackerel andAtlantic cod.[4] Flocks of seabirds,whales, dolphins, sharks, and schools of larger fish such astuna andmarlin follow mackerel schools and attack them in sophisticated and cooperative ways. Mackerel flesh is high inomega-3 oils and is intensively harvested by humans. In 2009, over 5 million tons were landed by commercial fishermen.[1] Sport fishermen value the fighting abilities of theking mackerel.[5]
Over 30 different species, principally belonging to the familyScombridae, are commonly referred to as mackerel. The term "mackerel" is derived fromOld French and may have originally meant either "marked, spotted" or "pimp, procurer". The latter connection is not altogether clear, but mackerelspawn enthusiastically inshoals near the coast, and medieval ideas on animal procreation were creative.[6]
About 21 species in the family Scombridae are commonly called mackerel. Thetype species for the scombroid mackerel is theAtlantic mackerel,Scomber scombrus. Until recently,Atlantic chub mackerel and Indo-Pacificchub mackerel were thought to be subspecies of the same species. In 1999, Collette established, on molecular and morphological considerations, that these are separate species.[7] Mackerel are smaller with shorter lifecycles than their close relatives, thetuna, which are also members of the same family.[8][9]
In addition, a number of species with mackerel-like characteristics in the familiesCarangidae,Hexagrammidae andGempylidae are commonly referred to as mackerel. Some confusion had occurred between thePacific jack mackerel (Trachurus symmetricus) and the heavily harvestedChilean jack mackerel (T. murphyi). These have been thought at times to be the same species, but are now recognized as separate species.[83]
Still life with mackerel, lemon and tomato,Van Gogh, 1886
The term "mackerel" is also used as a modifier in the common names of other fish, sometimes indicating the fish has vertical stripes similar to a scombroid mackerel:
Like other scombroids, mackerel such as thisAtlantic mackerel are superb swimmers, and can retract their fins into grooves on their bodies for streamlining. They have deeply forked tails and are smaller and slimmer thantuna.[128][129]
Most mackerel belong to the family Scombridae, which also includestuna andbonito. Generally, mackerel are much smaller and slimmer than tuna, though in other respects, they share many common characteristics. Theirscales, if present at all, are extremely small. Like tuna and bonito, mackerel are voracious feeders, and are swift and manoeuvrable swimmers, able to streamline themselves by retracting their fins into grooves on their bodies. Like other scombroids, they lack aswim bladder, and their bodies are cylindrical with numerousfinlets on thedorsal andventral sides behind thedorsal andanal fins, but unlike the deep-bodied tuna, they are slim.[128]
Thetype species for scombroid mackerels is the Atlantic mackerel,Scomber scombrus. These fish areiridescent blue-green above with a silvery underbelly and near-vertical wavy black stripes running along their upper bodies.[29][130][failed verification]
The prominent stripes on the back of mackerels seemingly are there to provide camouflage against broken backgrounds. That is not the case, though, because mackerel live in midwater pelagic environments which have no background.[131] However, fish have anoptokinetic reflex in theirvisual systems that can be sensitive to moving stripes.[132] For fish to school efficiently, they need feedback mechanisms that help them align themselves with adjacent fish, and match their speed. The stripes on neighbouring fish provide "schooling marks", which signal changes in relative position.[131][133] Thelateral line also helps with orderlyschooling.[134][135]
Mackerel, such as thesePacific jack mackerel, usually have vertical stripes on their sides which provide "schooling marks", visual clues that help them stay in formation as theyschool.[131]
A layer of thin, reflecting platelets is seen on some of the mackerel stripes. In 1998,E J Denton and D M Rowe argued that these platelets transmit additional information to other fish about how a given fish moves. As the orientation of the fish changes relative to another fish, the amount of light reflected to the second fish by this layer also changes. This sensitivity to orientation gives the mackerel "considerable advantages in being able to react quickly while schooling and feeding."[136]
Mackerel are strong swimmers. Known in the latin family as "punctualis piscis" which translates to "punctual fish." This is due to its punctuality of migration during mating season as it moves from warm to cold waters. Atlantic mackerel can swim at a sustained speed of 0.98 m/sec with a burst speed of 5.5 m/sec,[139][140] while chub mackerel can swim at a sustained speed of 0.92 m/sec with a burst speed of 2.25 m/sec.[128] TheWahoo (Acanthocybium solandri) has been known to reach speeds of up to 78 km/h (48 mph).[141]
Some mackerel species, especiallypelagic andfilter feeding one such as chub mackerel, migrate vertically, staying at certain depths depending on the time of day and food availability.[145]
For example, adultsnake mackerel, conduct adiel vertical migration, staying in deeper water during the day and rising to the surface at night to feed. The young and juveniles also migrate vertically, but in the opposite direction, staying near the surface during the day and moving deeper at night.[146]
Gannets and other seabirds fuel themselves with mackerel
Mackerel are prolificbroadcast spawners, and must breed near the surface of the water because the eggs of the females float. Individual females lay between 300,000 and 1,500,000 eggs.[128] Theireggs andlarvae arepelagic, that is, they float free in the open sea. The larvae and juvenile mackerel feed onzooplankton. As adults, they have sharp teeth, and hunt small crustaceans such ascopepods,forage fish,shrimp, andsquid. In turn, they are hunted by larger pelagic animals such as tuna,billfish,sea lions,sharks, andpelicans.[27][44][147]
Thechub mackerel is the most intensively fished mackerel in the scombroid family.
Chilean jack mackerel have been overfished and the population may be in danger of collapsing. Here an entireschool of about 400 tons is encircled by apurse seiner.
A fresh catch from an African beach
Chub mackerel,Scomber japonicus, are the most intensively fished scombroid mackerel. They account for about half the total capture production of scombroid mackerels.[1] As a species, they are easily confused with Atlantic mackerel. Chub mackerel migrate long distances in oceans and across the Mediterranean. They can be caught withdrift nets and suitabletrawls, but are most usually caught withsurround nets at night by attracting them with lampara lamps.[150]
The remaining catch of scombroid mackerels is divided equally between the Atlantic mackerel and all other scombroid mackerels. Just these two species (Chub mackerel and Atlantic mackerel) account for about 75% of the total catch of scombroid mackerels.[1]
Chilean jack mackerel are the most commonly fished non-scombroid mackerel, fished as heavily as chub mackerel.[1][97] The species has beenoverfished, and its fishery may now be in danger of collapsing.[151][152]
Smaller mackerel behave likeherrings, and are captured in similar ways.[153] Fish species like these, whichschool near the surface, can be caught efficiently by purse seining. Huge purse-seine vessels use spotter planes to locate the schooling fish. Then they close in using sophisticated sonar to track the shape of the school, which is then encircled with fast auxiliary boats that deploy purse seines as they speed around the school.[154][155]
Suitably designedtrollers can also catch mackerels effectively when they swim near the surface. Trollers typically have several long booms which they lift and drop with "topping lifts". They haul their lines with electric or hydraulic reels.[156]Fish aggregating devices are also used to target mackerel.[157]
TheNorth Sea has been overfished to the point where the ecological balance has become disrupted and many jobs in the fishing industry have been lost.[158]
The Southeast US region spans theGulf of Mexico, theCaribbean Sea, and the US Southeast Atlantic. Overfishing ofking andSpanish mackerel occurred in the 1980s. Regulations were introduced to restrict the size, fishing locations, and bag limits for recreational fishers and commercial fishers.Gillnets were banned in waters off Florida. By 2001, the mackerel stocks had bounced back.[159]
Mackerel is an importantfood fish that is consumed worldwide.[160] As anoily fish, it is a rich source ofomega-3 fatty acids.[161] The flesh of mackerel spoils quickly, especially in the tropics, and can causescombroid food poisoning. Accordingly, it should be eaten on the day of capture, unless properly refrigerated orcured.[162]
Mackerel preservation is not simple. Before the 19th-century development of canning and the widespread availability of refrigeration, salting and smoking were the principal preservation methods available.[163] Historically in England, this fish was not preserved, but was consumed only in its fresh form. However, spoilage was common, leading the authors ofThe Cambridge Economic History of Europe to remark: "There are more references to stinking mackerel in English literature than to any other fish!"[153] In France, mackerel was traditionally pickled with large amounts of salt, which allowed it to be sold widely across the country.[153]
For many years mackerel was regarded as 'unclean' in the UK and other places due to folklore which suggested that the fish fed on the corpses of dead sailors.[164] A 1976 survey of housewives in Britain undertaken by theWhite Fish Authority indicated a reluctance to departing from buying the traditional staples of cod, haddock or salmon. Less than 10% of the survey's 1,931 respondents had ever bought mackerel, and only 3% did so regularly. As a result of this trend, many UKfishmongers during the 1970s did not display or even stock mackerel.[164]
^Poulin, E; Cárdenas, L; Hernández, CE; Kornfield, I; Ojeda, FP (2004). "Resolution of the taxonomic status of Chilean and Californian jack mackerels using mitochondrial DNA sequence".Journal of Fish Biology.65 (4):1160–1164.Bibcode:2004JFBio..65.1160P.doi:10.1111/j.0022-1112.2004.00514.x.
^Bruce Collette (Smithsonian, USA); William F. Smith-Vaniz (??); Jeffrey Williams (National Museum of Natural History); Monique Curtis (National Environment & Planning Agency (Jamaica)); Lyda Marcela Grijalba Bendeck (Universidad Jorge Tadeo Lozano, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Ingeniería, Programa de Biología Marina, GIPECA (Colombia)); Fabian Pina Amargos (Centro de Investigaciones de Ecosistemas Costeros (CIEC) (Cuba)) (22 August 2012)."IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Nealotus tripes".IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Archived fromthe original on 29 January 2025.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^Bruce Collette (Smithsonian, USA); William F. Smith-Vaniz (??); Jeffrey Williams (National Museum of Natural History); Monique Curtis (National Environment & Planning Agency (Jamaica)); Lyda Marcela Grijalba Bendeck (Universidad Jorge Tadeo Lozano, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Ingeniería, Programa de Biología Marina, GIPECA (Colombia)); Fabian Pina Amargos (Centro de Investigaciones de Ecosistemas Costeros (CIEC) (Cuba)) (23 August 2012)."IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Gempylus serpens".IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Archived fromthe original on 28 December 2024.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^Block, BA; Finnerty, JR (1993). "Endothermy in fishes: a phylogenetic analysis of constraints, predispositions, and selection pressures".Environmental Biology of Fishes.40 (3):283–302.doi:10.1007/BF00002518.S2CID28644501.
^Wardle, CS; He, P (1988). "Endurance at intermediate swimming speeds of Atlantic mackerel,Scomber scombrus L., herring,Clupea harengus L., and saithe,Pollachius virens L".Journal of Fish Biology.33 (2):255–266.Bibcode:1988JFBio..33..255H.doi:10.1111/j.1095-8649.1988.tb05468.x.
^Compagno, L.J.V. (1984).Sharks of the World: An Annotated and Illustrated Catalogue of Shark Species Known to Date. Rome: Food and Agricultural Organization. pp. 466–468.ISBN978-92-5-101384-7.
Vulnerable[15]
Least concern[20]
Near threatened[48]
Data deficient[54]
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