Mackerel fishery of the Malabar area - major broods and their recruitment

Abstract

Three important broods contribute to the bulk of the mackerel catch in the Malabar area - November brood, May brood and July brood. May and July broods are very abundant broods recruited to the fishery during the monsoon months. During the study period 86. 80 % of the May brood was exploited in the monsoon months (June-August) and 75 % of the July brood was exploited in the post monsoon months (September-October). The November brood recruited to the fishery in summer was comparatively less abundant and 53.59 % of this brood was exploited in the summer months (March-May). Favourable environment seems to be the reason for stronger recruitment during the monsoon. 63.03 % of the catch of mackerel was of size below 17 cm. It indicated growth over fishing as they were found to reach a size of around 24 cm by the end of first year of their life.