Scientific name: |
Trachurus declivis (jack mackerel), T. novaezelandiae (New Zealand jack mackerel), T. symmetricus murphyi (Peruvian jack mackerel) |
Other names: |
haature, hauture (Maori), horse mackerel, horse jack mackerel, slender jack mackerel, chinchard neozelandias (Canada), Chilean jack mackerel, saurel (France), maaji (Japan) |
Jack mackerel caught using purse seine from the North Island’s east coast is a slightly better choice than trawl-caught, which is ranked red as a worst choice seafood. An alternative is skipjack tuna or kahawai.
These three species of jack mackerel are managed as one species and are mainly caught in the trawl fisheries and some in the purse seine target fishery or as bycatch in the Bay of Plenty and off Northland’s east coast. Peruvian jack mackerel are a southern ranging species found in deepwater, whereas the two other jack mackerel are northern species. They all form schools in midwater and range from shallow bays and harbours to oceanic islands and reefs.
Jack mackerel are caught mainly by bottom trawling, but purse seine dominates the catch in JMA 1. This is New Zealand’s third biggest fishery. Purse seine fishing has no impact on bottom habitat while bottom trawling has significant impacts. There are concerns over the fishery including the management of three species as one fishery, limited research, lack of some basic biological data for Peruvian jack mackerel and the unknown sustainability of recent catch levels especially for western New Zealand (JMA 7). Of significant concern is the bycatch of dolphins in the fishery off the west coast of the North Island (JMA 7) and fur seals in the fishery of the South Island east and south coasts (JMA 3). Non-target fish bycatch and seabird bycatch are also of concern.
Not certified under any scheme.
Export value of $64.2 million in 2015 with main markets in China (30%), Angola, Cameroon, Congo, Peru, Mozambique, and Japan.
Asssessment output
Purse seine and trawl fisheries and regional differences were assessed. The purse seine fishery in JMA 1 (east coast of the North Island) scored an orange rating, highlighting that there are still concerns with this fishery, although it is a better choice than trawl-caught. All regions’ trawl fisheries scored a red rating, and are a worst choice seafood which should be avoided.
| Score: | Purse seine – D, trawl (JMA 7 – west coast of North and South Island) – C, all other trawl – D |
| Population size: | Unknown. No abundance indices are available. |
| Annual catch limit: | Limit set at 60,547 tonnes since 2001-02 was cut in JMA 3 by 9220 tonnes to a new total limit from 1 October 2016 of 51,237 tonnes. |
| Recorded catch: | Reported landings of 48,262 tonnes in 2014-15. |
| Stock trends: | Unknown. Decline in T. declivis in JMA 7. Landings have consistently been lower than the total allowable commercial catch since the mid-1990s. |
| MSY Status: | Unknown. |
| The Ministry of Primary Industries assessment plenary report includes: |
For JMA 1 and 3: “It is not known whether catches at the level of the current TACCs or recent catch levels are sustainable in the long-term.” For JMA7: “Estimates of total mortality for T. declivis (JMD) and T. novaezelandiae (JMN) from catch curve analyses in 2011 suggest that fishing mortality was well below natural mortality (M) for JMD and about equal to M for JMN.” (MPI 2016, p 528-531). |
| Score: | Both purse seine and trawl (all regions) – C |
| Distribution: | Jack mackerel and New Zealand jack mackerel are northern species above 45⁰S and 42⁰S respectively. Peruvian jack mackerel is a more southerly species, from around the Stewart-Snares Shelf and the Chatham Rise. The two northern species are found <150-300m,while Peruvian jack mackerel is found to a depth of >500m. |
| Maximum age (years): | 25+ |
| Age at sexual maturity: | 2-4 |
| Growth rate: | Moderate |
| Reproductive output: | Medium-high |
| Age exploited: | 2-3 |
| Ability to recover: | Moderate |
| Score: | All trawl regions – E, purse seine – B |
| Fishing method(s): | Bottom and midwater trawling in JMA 3 and 7, and purse seining in JMA 1. Jack mackerel is the second most common catch after skip jack tuna in the purse seine fishery. |
| Habitat damage: |
Purse seine: Low Trawl: Impacts include loss of biodiversity, loss of benthic productivity and modification of important habitat like breeding or juvenile areas. |
| Habitat of particular significance: | for jack mackerel hasn’t been defined in New Zealand. |
| Bycatch: |
Purse seine: From observed data, bycatch includes blue mackerel, sunfish, and a range of tuna and sharks. Trawl: Jack mackerel makes up about 70% of the target fishery and has non-threatened bycatch of nearly 7000 tonnes which includes barracouta, blue mackerel, frostfish and redbait. |
| Ecological effects: | This fishery has an impact on a range of pelagic fish species, which play an important role in driving smaller baitfish species close to the sea surface where a variety of seabird species are able to feed on them. Reducing these pelagic fish species can in turn reduce the amount of baitfish available at the sea surface for seabirds to feed on. |
| Score: | Purse seine – C, trawl (all regions) – E |
| Bycatch: |
Purse seine: Purse seine fisheries have a residual risk of seabird bycatch. The near-threatened spinetailed devil ray is the fifth most common species caught in purse seine nets, and is a protected species (CMS Appendix II). Other protected species observed caught in 2015 include three common dolphins and one loggerhead turtle. Trawl: Trawl fishing around Taranaki, off Waikato and Auckland catches common dolphins and long-finned pilot whales: about 25 per year in the last 5 years, with an average rate of 2.45 per 100 tows. There is an estimated capture of over six fur seals per year. The fishing area may also overlap with the offshore range of Maui’s dolphins, posing a possible risk to this critically endangered species. Trawling on the Snares shelf for jack mackerel catches about 50 fur seals annually. Shark species caught include dark ghost sharks and carpet sharks – two species which have declined in the fishery – and spiny dogfish and thresher sharks. Over 90% of spiny dogfish is discarded. |
| Score: | Both purse seine and trawl – E |
| Management component: | All three species managed together as one. The stock structure of T. murphyi is very uncertain as is its relationship with eastern Pacific stock. |
| Score: | Trawl JMA 7 (West Coast) – C, trawl all other regions – E, purse seine – E |
| Quota Management Species: | Yes, but only in all areas since 1995. |
| Catch limits: | Yes |
| Management plan: | Deepwater management plan for 2010-15 is out of date, and has yet to be reviewed and replaced. Jack mackerel is outside of the current plan. There is no operational plan and the old Deepwater plan lacks key environmental standards. The National Plans of Action on Seabirds and Sharks are more relevant to bycatch issues but they are slow to be implemented. |
| Stock assessment: | No new quantitative assessment for jack mackerel species since 1993 and partial assessment in JMA 7 in 2011. |
| Research: | Most recent assessment is old and needs updating. Given the size and scale of this fishery, research into sustainability of stocks is overdue. |
| Observer coverage: | Overall trawl fishery has 38% coverage; this includes 63% coverage in the North Island west coast target jack mackerel trawl fishery. Coverage is 9.9% in the purse seine fishery, and 52% in target squid trawl fishery (which catches jack mackerel as bycatch). Coverage in the purse seine fishery, which is focused on skipjack tuna, is unlikely to be spatially or temporally representative of the fishing effort. |
Fisheries map
Taken from the Ministry for Primary Industries’ Plenary report for fisheries management.
References
Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2016: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 1: Introductory Section to Hoki, Science Group, Ministry for Primary Industries; Ministry for Primary Industries (2016) Aquatic Environment and Biodiversity Annual Review 2015. Compiled by the Fisheries Management Science Team, Ministry for Primary Industries. 682p. The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd. Seafood New Zealand, 2016. New Zealand Seafood Exports to December 2015. 133p. Information describing Chilean jack mackerel (Trchurus murphyi) fisheries relating to the South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation. Doc SPRFMO-III-SWG-16; Francis, M. (2001) Coastal fishes of New Zealand: An identification Guide. 3rd Edition. Reed Publishing (New Zealand) Ltd. Annual Review Report for Deepwater Fisheries for 2014/15. MPI Technical Paper No: 2016/09. Prepared by the Ministry for Primary Industries. March 2016. 103p. S.J. Baird, D. Tracey, S. Mormede, M. Clark (2013) The distribution of protected corals in New Zealand waters. Prepared for DOC, February 2013. 96p. MFish (2010) National Fisheries Plan for Deep-Water and Middle-Depth Fisheries, 2010. 51p.