Bluefish
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- This article is on the Bluefish fish, for the text editor of same name, see Bluefish (text editor).
{{Taxobox | color = pink | name = Bluefish | image = bluefish.jpg | image_width = 300px | regnum = Animalia | phylum = Chordata | classis = Actinopterygii | ordo = Perciformes | familia = Pomatomidae | genus = Pomatomus | genus_authority = Lacépède, 1802 | species = P. saltatrix | binomial = Pomatomus saltatrix | binomial_authority = (Linnaeus, 1766) }}
Bluefish (Pomatomus saltatrix) are a popular marine game-fish found in all climates. They are the sole members of the Pomatomidae family.
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Description
The Bluefish is a moderately proportioned fish, with a broad, forked tail. The spiny first dorsal is normally folded back in a groove, as are its pectoral fins. Coloration is a grayish blue-green dorsally, fading to white on the lower sides and belly. Its single row of teeth in each jaw are uniform in size, knife-edged and sharp. Bluefish commonly range in size from seven to eight inch "Snapper" blues to as much as thirty to forty pounds or more. Fish heavier than twenty pounds are exceptional.
Distribution and Habitat
Bluefish are migratory marine fish, found worldwide in tropic and temperate seas,except for the eastern shores of the Pacific. On the western side of the Atlantic, their range is from Argentina to Nova Scotia. They are found off Africa, and in the Mediterranean and Black seas. Bluefish are generally found in bays and sandy bottomed near-shore waters. Migrating fish may be encountered in as much as 200 foot depths.
Migration Patterns
Bluefish are found off Florida in the winter months. By April, they have disappeared, heading North. By June, they may be found off Massachusetts; in years of high abundance, stragglers may be found as far North as Nova Scotia. By October, they leave New England waters, heading South.
Life History
Bluefish larvae are zooplankton,largely at the mercy of the currents. Spent Bluefish have been found off east central Florida, migrating North. As with most marine fish, their spawning habits are not well known. In the western side of the North Atlantic, there are at least two populations, separated by Cape Hatteras in North Carolina. The Gulf Stream can carry larvae spawned to the south of Cape Hatteras to the north, and eddies can spin off, carrying the larvae into populations found off the coast of the Mid-Atlantic, and the New England states. The Bluefish population is highly cyclical, with abundance varying widely over a span of ten years or more.
Feeding habits
Bluefish are voracious, predatory fish. Depending on area and season, they favor menhaden and other sardine like fish (clupeidae), jacks (scombridae), weakfish ( sciaenidae), grunts (pomadasyidae), striped anchovies (engraulidae), shrimp and squid. They should be handled with care due to their ability to snap at an unwary hand.
Gear and Methods
An important recreational and commercial fishery, Bluefish are prized for their fighting ability. Bluefish are caught by trolling or casting silver spoons and plugs with a fast retrieve. "walking the dog" with a surface lure at dawn or dusk near a sharp dropoff can also be productive. Commercially, Bluefish in the one to two pound range are taken with gill nets at night over sandy shallows.
Edibility
Although a commercially important fish, Bluefish are somewhat oily and strong flavored. To minimize any fishy taste, they should be gutted and iced promptly, and eaten while fresh.
Similar Species
Bluefish are the only members now included in the Pomatomidae family. At one time,
gnomefish were once included but these are now in grouped in a separate family Scombropidae.
References
External links
The average bluefish landings as part of the tag and release program from 1970-2000:
1970 - 487 1971 - 491 1972 - 517 1973 - 496 1974 - 531 1975 - 529 1976 - 557 1977 - 543 1978 - 570 1979 - 637 1980 - 643 1981 - 625 1982 - 598 1983 - 632 1984 - 654 1985 - 667 1986 - 674 1987 - 691 1988 - 675 1989 - 639 1990 - 751 1991 - 769 1992 - 771 1993 - 1003 1994 - 1761 1995 - 1178 1996 - 1120 1997 - 917 1998 - 802 1999 - 795 2000 - 1032