Atlantic Mackerel

The Atlantic mackerel is a schooling (pelagic) fish once caught for fertilizer. It does not keep well but can be canned. Fresh, it was popular in the Boston market with fast mackerel schooners bringing fish in from waters near Cape Cod. Today mackerel is primarily caught for bait and aquaculture food.

Drawings provided courtesy of the Maine Department of Marine Resources Recreational Fisheries program and the Maine Outdoor Heritage Fund.