I & I NSW Wild Fisheries research Program

Spanish Mackerel
(Scomberomorus commerson)
Exploitation Status Fully Fished

Majority of the commercial harvest occurs in Queensland waters and status from the Queensland
assessment has been adopted.

Scientific name Standard name comment

Scomberomorus commerson Spanish mackerel

Scomberomorus commerson
Image © Bernard Yau

Background
Spanish mackerel are distributed in the waters more than 1 million eggs. In Queensland
of the Indo-Pacific from the Red Sea and South waters, Spanish mackerel can reach 240 cm FL
Africa to southeast Asia, north to China and and a maximum weight of 70 kg with females
Japan, and south to Australia. They are also growing to a larger size than males. Initial
found in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. In growth is rapid with fish reaching 100 cm in
Australian waters, they are distributed from the first few years of life. The oldest males
Geographe Bay in WA around northern and and females sampled from catches by the
eastern Australia to St Helens in Tasmania. Queensland commercial fishery were 10
Within this geographical distribution, Spanish (127 cm FL, 19 kg) and 14 years (155 cm FL,
mackerel can be found from the edge of the 35 kg) respectively.
continental shelf to shallow coastal waters. Migrations of Spanish mackerel extend along
Adults are associated with coral reefs, rocky the entire east coast of Queensland although
shoals and current lines on outer reef areas permanently resident populations also seem
and offshore. Small juveniles up to 10 cm to exist. Resident fish disperse from reefs after
fork length (FL) occur in creeks, estuaries and spawning whilst migrating fish can move up
sheltered mud flats during the early wet season to 1000 nautical miles to the south (into NSW
in north Queensland. waters). The use of parasites to distinguish
Sampling of Spanish mackerel in WA showed between stocks suggested that there may be
that 50% of females reached sexual maturity six separate stocks of Spanish mackerel across
at about 79 cm, while 50% of males reached northern Australia, however, the use of isozyme,
sexual maturity at 63 cm. Females can be allozyme and mitochondrial DNA genetic
categorised as serial or partial spawners with analysis failed to find any significant differences.
fish showing a peak in reproductive activity The diet of Spanish mackerel consists of small
between August and January in WA, and during fish like anchovies, clupeids and carangids, as
the spring/summer months in Queensland. well as squid and prawns.
They are highly fecund - large females produce

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Additional Notes Landings by Commercial Fishery of Spanish

Mackerel
• NSW commercial landings are small (< 10 t)
compared with Queensland (200 - 600 t).
Ocean Trap and Line (Key Secondary Species)
• There are significant recreational landings of * Ocean Hauling (Conditional Target Species)
Spanish mackerel, especially in Queensland.

20
• A length-based stock assessment conducted
in 2008 by Queensland Fisheries concluded
that the stock was at about maximum

15
sustainable yield level, with exploitable

Landings (t)
biomass estimated to be 35-60% of the

10
unfished level.
• There is a minimum legal length of 75 cm

5
total length for Spanish mackerel and a
combined recreational bag limit of 5 for all
Spanish and spotted mackerel. 0
97/98 99/00 01/02 03/04 05/06 07/08

Financial Year

Reported landings of Spanish mackerel by NSW

Catch commercial fisheries from 1997/98. * Fisheries which
contribute less than 2.5% of the landings are excluded
Recreational Catch of Spanish Mackerel
for clarity and privacy.
The annual recreational harvest of Spanish
mackerel in NSW is likely to lie between 10
and 100 t. This estimate is based upon the
results of the offsite National Recreational and Catch Per Unit Effort Information of Spanish
Indigenous Fishing Survey (Henry and Lyle, Mackerel Harvested by All Line Methods in NSW
2003) and onsite surveys undertaken by
1.0

I & I NSW.
0.8
Relative Catch Rate

Historical Landings of Spanish Mackerel

0.6
50

0.4
40

0.2
Landings (t)
30

0.0

98/99 00/01 02/03 04/05 06/07 08/09

20

Financial Year

Catch rates of Spanish mackerel harvested using all

10

line methods for NSW. Two indicators are provided:

(1) median catch rate (lower solid line); and (2) 90th
0

percentile of the catch rate (upper dashed line). Note that

78/79 83/84 88/89 93/94 98/99 03/04 08/09
catch rates are not a robust indicator of abundance in
Financial Year many cases. Caution should be applied when interpreting
these results.
Commercial landings (including available historical
records) of Spanish mackerel for NSW from 1978/79 to
2008/09 for all fishing methods.

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Fur ther Reading

Collette, B.B. and C.E. Nauen (1983). Scombrids of the
World. An Annotated and Illustrated Catalogue
of Tunas, Mackerels, Bonitos and Related Species
Known to Date. Rome, FAO: 137 pp.
Henry, G.W. and J.M. Lyle (2003). The National
Recreational and Indigenous Fishing Survey. Final
Report to the Fisheries Research & Development
Corporation and the Fisheries Action Program
Project FRDC 1999/158. NSW Fisheries Final Report
Series No. 48. 188 pp. Cronulla, NSW Fisheries.
McPherson, G.R. (1992). Age and growth of the
narrow-banded Spanish mackerel (Scomberomorus
commerson Lacepede, 1800) in north-eastern
Queensland waters. Australian Journal of Marine and
Freshwater Research 43: 1269-1282.
McPherson, G.R. (1993). Reproductive biology of the
narrow barred Spanish mackerel (Scomberomorus
commerson Lacepede, 1800) in Queensland waters.
Asian Fisheries Science 6 (2): 169-182.
Queensland Fisheries. (2009). Annual status report
- 2009 east coast Spanish mackerel fishery.
Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic
Development and Innovation: 13 pp.
Queensland Fisheries. (2010). Stock status of
Queensland’s fisheries resources 2009-10.
Queensland, Department of Employment, Economic
Development and Innovation: 65 pp.
Steffe, S., J. Murphy, D. Chapman, B.E. Tarlington,
G.N.G. Gordon and A. Grinberg (1996). An
assessment of the impact of offshore recreational
fishing in New South Wales on the management of
commercial fisheries. Project 94/053. Sydney, NSW
Fisheries Research Institute: 139 pp.
Welch, D., S. Hoyle, N. Gribble and G. McPherson
(2002). Preliminary assessment of the east coast
Spanish mackerel fishery in Queensland. Brisbane,
Queensland Department of Primary Industries.

Please visit the CSIRO website,

[Link] and search for the
species code (CAAB) 37 441007, common name or
scientific name to find further information.

© State of New South Wales through Industry and Investment NSW 2010. You may copy,
distribute and otherwise freely deal with this publication for any purpose, provided that you
attribute Industry and Investment NSW as the owner.

Disclaimer: The information contained in this publication is based on knowledge and understanding
at the time of writing (April 2010). However, because of advances in knowledge, users are
reminded of the need to ensure that information upon which they rely is up to date and to check
currency of the information with the appropriate officer of Industry and Investment NSW or the
user’s independent adviser.

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