in the tropics, and can cause scombroid food poisoning. Accordingly, it should be eaten on the day of capture, unless properly refrigerated or cured. Mackerel preservation is not simple. Before the 19th-century development of canning and the widespread availability of refrigeration, salting and smoking were the principal preservation methods available. Historically in England, this fish was not preserved, but was consumed only in its fresh form. However, spoilage was common, leading the authors of The Cambridge Economic History of Europe to remark: "There are more references to stinking mackerel in English literature than to any other fish!" In France, mackerel was traditionally pickled with large amounts of salt, which allowed it to be sold widely across the country. For many years mackerel was regarded as 'unclean' in the UK and other places due to folklore which suggested that the fish fed on the corpses of dead sailors. A 1976 survey of housewives in Britain undertaken by the White Fish Authority indicated a reluctance to departing from buying the traditional staples of cod, haddock or salmon. Less than 10% of the survey's 1,931 respondents had ever bought mackerel and only 3% did so regularly. As a result of this trend many UK fishmongers during the 1970s did not display or even stock mackerel. References Further reading Bigelow HB and Schroeder WC (1953) Fishes of the Gulf of Maine: Mackerel Fisheries Bulletin, Volume 53, Number 74, United States Fish and Wildlife Service. Burton M and Burton R (2002) International Wildlife Encyclopedia Marshall Cavendish, pp. 1517–1518. . Keay JN (2001) Handling and processing mackerel Torry advisory note 66. SPRFMO(2009) Information describing Chilean jack mackerel (Trachurus murphyi) fisheries relating to the South Pacific Regional Fishery Management Organisation Working draft. External links Atlantic Mackerel British Marine Life Study Society. Retrieved 3 March 2012. Mackerel nutrition facts Fishing for mackerel Scombridae Oily fish Commercial fish Fish common names