Pomatomus

Lore & Background

The bluefish is a moderately proportioned fish with a broad, forked tail. Its spiny first dorsal fin is normally folded back in a groove, as are its pectoral fins.

Coloration is grayish blue-green dorsally, fading to white on the lower sides and belly. A single row of knife-edged, sharp teeth of uniform size lines each jaw. Bluefish commonly range in size from 'snappers' of 7 inches to much larger individuals, sometimes weighing as much as 30 lb, though fish heavier than 20 lb are exceptional.

At one time, gnomefishes were included in Pomatomidae, but they are now grouped in a separate family, Scombropidae. Extinct relatives include Carangopsis from the Early Eocene of Italy and Lophar from the Late Miocene of Southern California.

Bluefish are widely distributed in tropical and subtropical waters, found on continental shelves along eastern America (except between south Florida and northern South America), Africa, the Mediterranean and Black Seas, Southeast Asia, and Australia. They inhabit coastal habitats above the continental shelf, near surf beaches, by rock headlands, and enter estuaries and brackish waters. Periodically they migrate in schools through open waters.

Adult bluefish are strong, aggressive, and live in loose groups. They are fast swimmers that prey on schools of forage fish, continuing to attack in feeding frenzies even after appearing to have eaten their fill.

Depending on area and season, they favor menhaden, sardine-like fish, jacks, weakfish, grunts, striped anchovies, shrimp, and squid. They are cannibalistic and can destroy their own young. Bluefish sometimes chase bait through the surf zone, attacking schools in very shallow water, a behavior referred to as a 'bluefish blitz.'

Reader's Guide

Pomatomus saltatrix is a popular gamefish and food fish, but has been widely overfished. Fisheries management has generally stabilized its population. In the middle Atlantic region of the U.S., bluefish were heavily overfished in the late 1990s, but active management rebuilt the stock by 2007. Elsewhere, public awareness efforts such as bluefish festivals, combined with catch limits, may be having positive effects in reducing stress on regional stocks.

In the U.S., bluefish are landed primarily in recreational fisheries, but important commercial fisheries also exist in temperate and subtropical waters. Bluefish population abundance is typically cyclical, varying widely over a span of 10 years or more. The species is known for its aggressive behavior and has been known to inflict severe bites on fishermen; wading or swimming among feeding schools can be dangerous. A seven-year-old girl was attacked on a beach near Alicante, Spain, allegedly by a bluefish, though lifeguards in New Jersey report never having seen bluefish bite bathers.

Culinarily, bluefish may be baked or smoked; smaller 'snapper blues' are generally fried. Because of its fattiness, bluefish goes rancid rapidly and is generally not found far from its fisheries. It is high in omega-3 fatty acids but also in mercury and PCBs, containing about 0.4 ppm of mercury on average. The U.S. FDA recommends that young children and women of childbearing age consume no more than one serving per week.

Did You Know?

• A fishing ban near Istanbul occurs every year between April 15 and September 1 to preserve fish eggs.