The king mackerel, Scomberomorus cavalla , and Spanish mackerel, Scomberomorus maculatus , are members of the mackerel family, Scombridae. They are found only occasionally in the upper Bay.
Juveniles also have five or six irregular rows of bronze spots along their sides.
King mackerel are solitary surface dwellers that tend to be found near shore, often among reefs, wrecks or other underwater structures. Immature fish school, and sometimes mix with schools of Spanish mackerel of similar sizes. These mackerel appear to spawn over a protracted period, with several peaks. On the Atlantic coast, larvae have been collected from May through October. Larval distribution indicates that spawning occurs in the western Atlantic off the Carolinas, Cape Canaveral and Miami.