Spanish Mackerel 



Spanish Mackerel 



Scomberomorus maatlatus (Mitchill) 



The Spanish mackerel is a fish of wide distribution on our 

 Atlantic Coast, ranging north in the fall as far as Cape Ann, and 

 in the south to Brazil. In the West Indies it has been found 

 about Jamaica and Porto Rico, but is probably not known from 

 Cuba. In the Gulf of Mexico and on our South Atlantic Coast 

 it appears irregularly in large schools. 



The catch on our Atlantic and Gulf Coasts has been subject 

 to great variations. In the early history of this country the 

 Spanish Mackerel was scarcely known, and not until within the 

 last 30 years has it become of much commercial importance. 

 The catch in 1897 amounted to 1,183,456 pounds, worth $69,778. 



It is now one of the most highly prized of all our fishes, 

 and always commands a high price. 



Ordinarily it reaches a weight of 6 to 10 pounds, but oc- 

 casionally very large individuals are taken. The largest we have 

 seen was taken in October, 1901, off Chesapeake Bay, and 

 weighed 25 pounds. It was 41 inches long. 



This fish is usually taken in pounds or gillnets, though many 

 are taken by trolling. It is an excellent game-fish. It is a fish 

 of the sunnier climes and comes to us only in the spring, sum- 

 mer and autumn, when it may be seen, sometimes in large 

 schools, swimming at the surface, feeding upon other fishes, 

 often leaping and disporting itself in the sun. The menhaden is 

 probably its principal food, though many other species are eaten. 



The Spanish mackerel spawns on the Carolina Coast in 

 April and May and in the lower Chesapeake during the first 

 half of June. Their eggs are very small and very numerous, a 

 6-pound fish producing about 1,300,000 eggs. 



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