ATLANTIC MACKEREL FISHERY, 1804-1965 i 2 The mackerel, Scomber scombrus, has a streamlined body and unusual coloration. Iride scent greenish blue covers most of the upper body, turning to blue-black on the head--the belly is a silver white. UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE BUREAU OF COMMERCIAL FISHERIES Fishery Leaflet 603 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Stewart L. Udall, Secretary David S. Black, Under Secretary Stanley A. Cain, Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE, Clarence F . Pautzke, Commissioner BUREAU OF COMMERCIAL FISHERIES, H. E . Crowther, Direc tor ATLANTIC MACKEREL FISHERY, 1804 - 1965 By DWIGHT L. HOY and GEORGE M. CLARK Fi shery Leaflet 603 Washingt on, D.C. 20240 November 1967 CONTENTS Page History .........•.••....•. Atlantic mackerel catch, 1804- 1965 3 Atlantic mackerel catch, by statistical regions , 1871 - 1965 5 References ..... 9 ) iii ATLANTIC MACKEREL FISHERY , 1804 - 1965 By DWIGHT L. HOY A D GEORGE • . CLA K HISTORY ATLA T IC MAC R L I H RY Am dcan colonist of the 1600' s considered nd fall runs o f fish h mack r 1 on o f their most impor ant staple commoditi s . Mackerel was a valuabl ourc of food a t t heir v ry doors ps fre for the taking, and r turn of the schools each spring wa ag rly ant icipated . Fluctuation of catch s from year to year cr a t ed apprehension among the colonists, and, as arly as 1670, they passed laws to pr vent overfishing--the season and methods o f capture were regulat ed. Little was known of th curious pattern of scarcity to super­ abundance which, ven today, pres nts a fas­ cinating and elusive puz.zle. Earlie t records (1626) indicate tha the principal commercial method of catching mack r 1 was by haul seine, which was t he major fi hing gear until 1800 when "drailing" wa favored . For this method of fi hing, a in a ea on, vess 1 was fitted with a number of outriggers are pawn d a on (pol s) to which line were attached. On each pawrung life of 4 ,. line a tied a sink r and a ook, vhich was duc l mllhon e g n rally bait d with ?ork rind . The vessel wh rever he {I h had ' 0 b underway b fore th mackerel would are npe . bit . About I 12 it becam general pract ic Off he Am to "chum" t he mackerel to the ves el by thro\ ing chop~ed bait overboard . Thl con­ siderably increa ed the fficiency of th hOOK and line fisher y . In lithe sinker wa ttached to the hank o f he hOOK, fo rmlng a unit call d a "jig, " which had the advanta e durable and effec lve. d . Burl u or UUIllIIIl' Besides contending with the caprices of acceptable t mperat ur . Some farfetched nature, mackerel are preyed upon by many stories have grown around t his annual dis ­ form s of s ea life, such as whales , porpoises, appearance such as the fish having all migrat ed sharks, t una, bonito, bluefish, and s t riped to Europe or having buried t hems lves in the bass. Cod, squid, and other fish destroy great mud . numbers of young fish less than 4 to 5 inches Fresh mackerel is considered by many to long. Sea birds also devour multitudes of the be one of the choicest food fishes. In the early smaller fish. 1800' s , mackerel were caught close mshore, Mackerel grow rapidly. Earliest hatched dressed, and placed In tubs of salt water , fr y will have grown to 2 -1 / 2 incnes in length which was frequ ntly changed to keep the fish by June, 2 -1/2 to 5 inches by August, and cool. The object was to catch the mackerel will have reached "blink" size (6-1 / 2 inches) and get them to market before daylight so by the end of August. Young fish caught in that they could be sold in the cool of the October are called "tacks " or "spikes" and mormng. Today, the fr shly caught mackerel are 7 to 8 inches long. Most fish of t he year are immediately ic d and packed in boxes for will be 8 to 9 inches by very late fall . When shipment. Improved handling and transporta­ the second summer has passed, the average tion methods have considerably increased the fish of this year class, known as "tinkers , " radius of fresh fish sales . will be 12 to 14 inches long. They grow In the year 18) 8 , the flrst trip was made to gradually and reach matunty h the third catch mackerel for salting. As the market year when reproduction begins. tor salt mackerel increased, the fleet grew, Mackerel eat almost all marin e animals and larger vessels were built to operate not too big to be swallowed or too s mall to throughout the entire range o f the flshery . be seen. At times they are caught packed Withm 20 years, more than 900 salling vessels full of the tiny crustacean Calanus, the "red operated from 'ew England, catching as much feed " or "ca yenne " so named by fishermen. as 100 million pounds per year . In years of They eat any small fish larvae and minute local scarcity , some vessels even salled to pelagic crustacea, such as crab larvae and Europe for their fare. copepods. Euphausiid shrimps rank high on About the time that power replaced sail as its menu; and squid, sand launce, and annelid the method of propulsion, the market began worms have been found in their stomachs. to demand fresh and frozen mackerel in Instead of being one vast homogeneous stock preference to the salted product . The expand­ as wa s once supposed, the mackerel native Ing fresh mackerel market required the ves ­ to the American coast are actually contained sels to make shorter and more frequent trips. in two populations--a southern and a northern. By the 1920' s , most fishermen were using The southern vanguard appears from offshore power-driven vessels, and the resultant quick in early April, advancing toward Virginia, trips frequently flooded the market and de­ Maryland, and New Jersey and moving slowly pressed pnces . The canneries depended upon northward to spawn off New Jersey and Long these low- pnced fish and packed a palatable Island. In late May, thp. northern contingent product that found wide acceptance . enters southern New E':1gland waters for a The catch of mackerel in the Gulf of Maine short period, mingling with the other contingent is subject to considerable variation from year but soon moving on again, and in June or to year . A good year may bring catches 100 early July spawns off Nova Scotia and in the times greater than a poor year . When mackerel Gulf of St. Lawrence. Such spring move­ were plentiful in the 1940' s , they were usually ments appear to be spawning migrations and the fifth most valuable ew England marine are probably triggered by water temperature, species, and their value was surpassed only about 460 F . being critical. For many years by lobsters, haddock, cod, and ocean perch. Gloucester fishermen took advantage of the Recent years of scarcity have fo rced fi sher­ early appearance of the southern population, men and processors away from dependence on sailed their boats down the coast to fish off mackerel. New Jersey, and remained with the schools The astonishing changes in abundance from during the northward migration. season to season are due largely to the degree As autumn approaches, fish that summer of survival of the young of a y ear. Sustained along the Maine coast, mostly of the southern good annual catches depend principally on a populat ion, work back southward toward Cape series of successful year classes . Failure of Cod and disappear, after October, off Block several year clas s es will be followed by sharp Island. The northern contingent returns through declines in the catches. A year when most the Gulf of Maine in November o~ early fish caught are large, with very few small December, finally vanishing off Cape Cod. fish being taken anywhere, suggests that the Infrequent catches have been made throughout fishi ng in the next few years will be dis ­ the winter by otter trawlers and New Jersey appointing. On the other hand, a year in which pound nets, but by Chri stma s all macker el great numbers of small fish are apparent usually have dropped from sight, probably often indicates that several years of heavy C into deep water where they winter in a more landings are in the offing. (Cont. on page 9) 2 ATLANTIC MACKEREL CATCH, 1804 - 1965 (THOUSAND S OF POU NOS ) UN ITED YEAR CANADA UNITED STATE S YEA R CANADA STATES TOTAL QUANT ITY QUANT ITY QUANTITY QU ANTITY QUANTITY 1804 1 3, 597 1870 1 146,554 1 1805 1 3, 924 1871 1 121 ,340 1 1806 1 3,764 1872 1 80,612 1 1807 1 4 , 258 1873 1 82,307 1 1808 1 3 , 491 1874 1 120, 381 1 1809 1 4 , 039 1875 1 55, 949 1 1876 31,362 99, 283 130, 645 1810 1 5 , 744 1877 4 9 , 556 50, 046 99,602 1811 1 7 , 963 1878 55, 409 73, 675 129, 084 1812 1 2 , 692 187 9 57 , 316 82, 725 140,041 1813 1 1 , 7 19 1814 1 614 1880 70,331 13 1 , 128 201,459 1815 1 7 ,349 1881 32,412 146, 871 179, 283 1816 1 14, 173 1882 34, 293 142, 074 176,367 1817 1 17, 098 1883 3 8 , 63 2 85, 007 123,639 18 18 1 21 , 210 1884 54, 534 179, 279 233 , 813 1819 1 45, 814 1885 44, 720 123, 728 168,448 1886 45 , 832 30,000 75,832 1820 1 5 2 , 920 1887 36, 195 33, 099 69, 294 1821 1 50, 802 1888 18, 953 19 , 709 38,662 1822 1 73,354 1889 19, 064 10,212 29,276 1823 1 66 , 359 1824 1 87 , 7 03 1890 29, 440 10,945 40,385 1825 1 116, 414 1891 40 , 557 19,362 59,919 1826 1 72, 644 1892 28,161 21 , 963 50,124 1827 1 87, 0 88 1893 22, 536 25, 234 47,770 1828 1 108, 605 1894 17, 329 22 , 541 39,870 1829 1 103, 414 1895 12,734 11,975 24,709 1896 13,757 35, 300 49,057 1830 1 141 , 16 1 1897 8,342 10, 601 18,943 1831 1 175, 5 22 1898 10, 150 10, 047 20,197 1832 1 10 1 , 800 1899 10,381 13,481 23,862 1833 1 10 2 , 020 1834 1 115,725 1900 25, 210 45,831