Striped Bass are Looking for MackerelWhy all the focus on Mackerel? I want a striper! Mackerel are chased up and down the US atlantic coast by Stripers. Without Mackerel, or flies that imitate them, you might be missing the Striper of your life. In order to fish them effectively, you will need to know what the macks are doing and how they behave.
Atlantic Mackerel (Scomber scombrus) Atlantic Mackerel will shoal up offshore and head inshore in the spring once water temps start to rise. There they will chase smaller bait fish such as young pogys or prawn, grass shrimp and pretty much anything that swims and fits in their mouths. For surf casters, the first part of the day is often spent catching Mackerel for bait. Fresher is better when fishing for stripers. Frozen Macks may work, but fresh, always works better. Mackerel tend to school according to size. This makes adjusting cruising speed, navigation and avoiding danger much easier for the entire shoal. Stripers and Blues will group up a school, push them toward structure or sand bars and pick them off one at a time as they slip from the group. Once water temps hit about 51 degrees F, expect te Mackerel to start coming inshore to hunt. This is also the perfect time to start throwing Tinker Mack flies. By the age of 3 Atlantic Mackerel are sexually mature and ready to breed. The older the female, the more eggs. Anywhere from a haf million to just over a million eggs can be spawn from a single fish from Late spring into early summer. Macks can be found at most any depth from 0 to 500 or 600 feet. So there is no "correct depth" to try a Mack pattern. Atlantic Mackerel patterns are also appropriate anywhere from North Carolina north and inside the shelf. Thats a big range. Whether eating them, or using them for bait Mackerel should be iced immediately upon capture. The heavy oils in the dark meat along the lateral line will change the flavor and quality of the meat rapidly if not iced. Macks are difficult to keep alive, and will not last more than a few minutes in any cooler. The best and most successful method is to have constantly moving water pumped into a round barrel. Overflow being piped overboard. Lloyd Metcalf |
