Description

The bluefish is a moderately proportioned fish, with a broad, forked tail. The spiny first dorsal fin 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 inch (18 cm) "snappers" to as much as forty pounds (18 kg), though fish heavier than twenty pounds (9 kg) are exceptional.

 United States 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. They are also present in the Gulf of Mexico throughout the year .These  bluefish were caught around the Merrimac River in Newburyport Massachusetts

lBluefish Larvae are the size of zooplankton and are largely at the mercy of 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 fishes.  They should be handled with care due to their ability to snap at an unwary hand. In July 2006, a 7 year-old girl was attacked on a beach,, allegedly by a bluefish.

Bluefish are cannibalistic. For this reason, bluefish tend to swim in schools of similarly-sized specimens.

Sport fishermen prize bluefish for their fighting ability. When hooked, bluefish display their dogged strength by making numerous fast runs and an average of 5 acrobatic leaps. Bluefish will occasionally "skyrocket"--leap out of the water before landing on and attacking a top water lure or live bait fished at the surface--a spectacular sight for most fishermen.

Bluefish