The Mackerel Family 275 



It is a fish of the warm seas, approaching the 

 shores for spawning and feeding when the tem- 

 perature becomes suitable. It appears on the 

 Gulf coast of Florida in March and April, 

 though I have observed it as early as January 

 in forward seasons. Its advent on the Atlantic 

 coast is later, progressing gradually northward, 

 reaching the vicinity of New York in July and 

 August, and disappearing in October or Novem- 

 ber. Its breeding season in the Gulf of Mexico 

 is in the early spring, and as late as August or 

 September at the northern extent of its range. 

 Its spawning may cover a period of many weeks, 

 as the fish do not all mature at one and the same 

 time. The eggs are quite small, about twenty- 

 five to the inch, float at the surface, and hatch in 

 a single day. The newly hatched fry are very 

 small, about the tenth of an inch long, but in a 

 year will have attained a length of six inches. 

 The average weight of a mature fish is from two 

 to four pounds, rarely exceeding six or eight 

 pounds. 



The Spanish mackerel is held in the highest 

 esteem as a food-fish, being considered one of the 

 very best, second only to the pompano of the Gulf 

 or the whitefish of the Great Lakes. It has a 



