Species profiles: Life histories and environmental requirements of coastal fishes and invertebrates (South Atlantic): Bluefish
Species profiles are literature summaries of the life history, distribution, and environmental requirements of coastal fishes and invertebrates. Profiles are prepared to assist with environmental impact assessment. The bluefish (Pomatomus saltatrix) is a valuable recreational and commercial fish on the Atlantic coast. In the South Atlantic Region the recreational catch exceeds the commercial catch. The bluefish is a migratory pelagic fish that generally travels northward in spring and summer and southward in fall and winter along the Atlantic seaboard. In the South Atlantic Region, spawning occurs primarily during spring waters just shoreward of the Gulf Stream form southern North Carolina to Florida. Most larvae are carried northward by the Gulf Stream and are dispersed over the continental slope of the Middle Atlantic Region. Adult bluefish inhabit nearshore areas in the South Atlantic Region during their southerly migration in fall and winter. Larval bluefish eat mostly copepods, cladocerans, and invertebrate eggs; juveniles eat larger invertebrates and fishes. Adult bluefish eat fishes and seem to prefer schooling coastal species. Bluefish have been reported to avoid areas of low dissolved oxygen. Water turbidity may affect feeding because bluefish rely on vision to locate prey. Environmental disturbances which affect the dissolved oxygen concentration or turbidity of estuarine and nearshore waters may, therefore, affect bluefish distribution and feeding. 40 refs., 4 figs., 2 tabs.
- Research Organization:
- Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Station, Vicksburg, MS (USA); Fish and Wildlife Service, Washington, DC (USA); Georgia Univ., Athens, GA (USA). School of Forest Resources
- OSTI ID:
- 6037898
- Report Number(s):
- TR-EL-82-4; BR-82(11.96); ON: TI89015917
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
FISHES
BASELINE ECOLOGY
POPULATION DYNAMICS
SEASONAL VARIATIONS
ANIMAL GROWTH
COASTAL WATERS
ESTUARIES
FEEDING
FISHERIES
HABITAT
LIFE CYCLE
MIGRATION
PREDATOR-PREY INTERACTIONS
REPRODUCTION
TEMPERATURE DEPENDENCE
ANIMALS
AQUATIC ORGANISMS
ECOLOGY
GROWTH
SURFACE WATERS
VARIATIONS
VERTEBRATES
520100* - Environment
Aquatic- Basic Studies- (-1989)