Effects of Light on Schooling and Feeding of Jack Mackerel, Trachurus symmetricus

Schools of six jack mackerel each were photographed with infrared film at eight levels of luminance and also in darkness. Three indices were used to measure the behavior of the school from motion pictures. Two of the indices, mean distance to nearest neighbor and mean separation distance, were measures of the distances between individuals in a school; the other, mean angular deviation, was a measure of differences in orientation between individuals. A value for each index was calculated for each motion picture frame.From 12.1 to 6 × 10−6 ft-L no differences existed in the angular deviation of the school or in the distances between fish. At 6 × 10−7 ft-L the intervals between fish were much larger than at higher levels of brightness and groups showed little uniformity in their orientation. Below 6 × 10−7 ft-L (darkness) schools were dispersed and the distributions of values of angular deviation were random.The ability of jack mackerel to feed on live adult Artemia was also tested at eight levels of luminance and in darkness. The number of Artemia eaten at 6 × 10−5 ft-L was about half of that eaten at the normal daytime level of 12.1 ft-L. Few Artemia were eaten at 6 × 10−7 ft-L and none in darkness.Comparison of these data with measurements of light in the sea indicated that jack mackerel probably would be able to maintain schools near the surface on a moonless starlit night and that they probably could feed effectively near the surface on a full moonlight night.