Atlantic mackerel has plunged into a critical state after more than a decade of overfishing has been allowed to continue.
Scientists say the Atlantic mackerel spawning population is hugely depleted and the number of fish surviving to breed is at an all-time low. The decline will have dire consequences for the oceans and for people. Atlantic mackerel may be a little fish but they play a big role in the Atlantic Ocean ecosystem and Canada’s east coast fisheries.
Many marine animals, including the endangered porbeagle and shortfin mako sharks, marlins, seabirds, porpoises and whales, hunt the energy rich mackerel. Commercially important and iconic bluefin tuna chase spawning schools of mackerel into Atlantic Canadian bays during summer and autumn months.
Humans also target mackerel. They are landed in a sizeable commercial fishery and subsequently used as bait for the lobster trap fishery, one of the most important East Coast fisheries. Every summer, thousands of Atlantic Canadians fish for mackerel off wharfs and shores. It remains one of the last marine fish that everyone can access for food and recreation – a strong Maritime tradition and also a favourite pastime of newcomers. Mackerel connects everyday people to marine ecosystems.
In turn, mackerel eat all manner of small floating prey including fish and zooplankton (e.g. copepods, larval squid, crab and lobster), which together form the base of the Atlantic Ocean food web. As food and ocean conditions shift, so too does the mackerel, the animals that feed on mackerel, and the people and fishing sectors that rely on them.
The Atlantic mackerel population has been declining for some time, but the new 2019 science assessment done in March was more alarming than anticipated. The population is down 86% from where it was in the 1980s and the number of young fish making it to adulthood is the lowest ever. Also worrying, the age range of fish across the population is extremely diminished. There was only one age 1 fish found in 20,000 samples and no fish over 10 years old have been found for years, even though mackerel can live up to 20 years. The current population is almost entirely made up of fish hatched in 2015.
The Atlantic mackerel population has been overfished since 2008 and overfishing continues to this day. The population is being further stressed by rapidly changing ocean temperatures, currents and food availability off Atlantic Canada. The bottom line presented by science is clear – a drastic decrease in the amount of mackerel being fished is required to allow the population to increase to healthy levels. On the other hand, maintaining the status quo threatens to reduce the stock to a level from which it may not ever recover.
SeaChoice partner, The Ecology Action Centre, sits on the Atlantic Mackerel Advisory Committee and the Rebuilding Working Group that are grappling with the outcome of the science assessment and what it means for the mackerel fishery. The EAC has urged Canada’s fisheries minister to make the difficult decision to seriously reduce catches or even close the fishery. While no one wants to see a fishery seriously curtailed, the majority of the fishing fleets at the table understand the gravity of the situation and have also suggested measures that will require them to sacrifice their fleets.
SeaChoice understands the serious impacts on income that a closed or severely reduced fishery has for producers. There comes a point, however, when socio-economic considerations cannot override ecological realities. While difficult for fisheries now, bold action for the next few years to ensure the mackerel population increases is preferable to small steps that are more politically palatable but are not enough to halt the species decline, thus prolonging the sacrifice of the fleets. If the necessary bold action is taken, the government should consider supporting smaller fleets and producers whose margins are too slim to absorb the loss of the mackerel portion of their income.
