Bluefish!
Presented here is general information of Bluefish, its reproduction, habitat and food.
- General information:
The bluefish is something of a misnomer, as this species is most commonly a sea-green color above, fading into a silvery shade on its lower sides and belly. Bluefish are native to both the American and European-African coasts of the Atlantic Ocean. Along the western Atlantic they are abundant from Argentina to Cape Cod and are occasionally found as far north as Nova Scotia. Bluefish rarely exceed 20 pounds and 40 inches in length. Both male and female bluefish reach sexual maturity by the time they are 2 years old. - Reproduction:
Bluefish occurring between Cape Hatteras, North Carolina and New England spawn between June and August. Spawning occurs primarily offshore, over the continental shelf when water temperatures warm to between 64 and 72 degrees. After hatching, larvae inhabit surface waters and are swept along the continental shelf by prevailing currents. The fecundity (number of eggs produced) of females is related to their size. A 21 - inch female produces about 900,000 eggs while a 23 - inch female produces about 1,100,000 eggs per year. - Habitat:
Bluefish inhabit both inshore and offshore areas of coastal regions, with the young fish (first year of life) called "snappers" often frequent estuaries and river mouths. This species normally travel in large schools which may contain up to several thousand individuals. Bluefish display an annual migration pattern that is keyed to the seasonal warming and cooling of coastal waters. Larger fish initially inhabit deeper waters but move progressively shoreward into shallow areas as the summer progresses. Although many adult fish migrate southward during the fall their majority migratory movement appears to be offshore toward the warmer deep waters of the continental shelf. - Food:
Snappers eat a variety of small-bodied animals such as shrimp, small lobsters, crabs, larval fish and larval mollusks. Adult bluefish are opportunistic feeders, commonly focusing upon schooling species such as menhaden, squid, sand eels, herring, mackerel, alewives, scup, butterfish and cunners. Bluefish generally feed in schools, actively pursuing prey in tidal rips or in inshore shallows where food in easier to catch. The feeding behavior of this species is legendary! Bluefish are reputed to dash wildly about within schools of prey species, biting, crippling and killing numerous small fish that do not get eaten. They frequently drive schools of prey species into shallow inshore areas where it becomes easier to cripple or catch fish that are trying to escape.
Return to Captain Dave's Species Page!
