Scomber scombrus (Linnaeus, 1758)

Mylona, Dimitra, 2021, Catching tuna in the Aegean: biological background of tuna fisheries and the archaeological implications, Anthropozoologica 56 (2), pp. 23-37 : 29

Scomber scombrus (Linnaeus, 1758) –

Atlantic mackerel, σϗουμπρί

The maximum length for Atlantic mackerel is 60 cm and its maximum weight is 3.4 kg, while commonly it is about 30 cm (Froese & Pauli 2019). Atlantic mackerel, one of the smaller members of the Scombridae family, are cosmopolitan migratory and schooling fish that approach the coast twice a year, in spring and in autumn, when they swim near the sea surface. In the winter, they move to deeper waters. Springcaught Atlantic mackerels are very lean as opposed to the late summer-autumn catches, which are much fatter and suitable for preservation. In the Aegean they are caught from March to August. The rest of the year they are also occasionally caught, but in much smaller numbers. Atlantic mackerel is also found in the Black Sea ( Papanastasiou 1976). They are prey to several larger Scombridae .