Spring migration of Atlantic mackerel,Scomber scombrus,in relation to water temperature through Cabot Strait (Gulf of St. Lawrence)

Synopsis Sea surface temperatures across Cabot Strait (Gulf of St. Lawrence) ranged from 6 to 9°C on June 3, 1989, but only from 3 to 5°C on June 2, 1990. Periods of peak commercial landings of mackerel in eastern Cape Breton Island extended from May 22 to June 3 in 1989, and from May 28 to June 2 in 1990. In late May 1990, Atlantic mackerel were captured with a purse-seiner during exploratory fishing in Cabot Strait; commercial quantities were caught in water as cold as 2.8°C. The presence of mackerel in water a full 4°C colder than its reported lower tolerance limit indicates that the development of the 7°C isotherm is not a requirement for the vernal appearing of mackerel. The overlap of the periods of peak commercial landings between 1989 and 1990, despite: marked differences in warming chronology, suggests that the movements of mackerel are not as closely linked to water temperature as previously reported. The fish's thermal preferences could be subordinate to their reproductive requirements at this stage of their spawning migration.