ML072060573
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| Site: | Oyster Creek |
| Issue date: | 04/01/1989 |
| From: | Bozeman E, Moran D, Oliver J, Vandenavyle M Univ of Georgia, US Dept of Interior, Fish & Wildlife Service, US Dept of the Army, Corps of Engineers |
| To: | Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation |
| Davis J NRR/DLR/REBB, 415-3835 | |
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| TR EL-82-4 82(11.96) | |
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Biological Report 82(11.96)April 1989 REFERENCE COPYRECELIVE-JUL 0 5 Do Not Remove from the Library I. 5. F"9-.1 WAIdAifc Service National Wetlands Research Center TR EL-82-4 700 Cajun Dome Boulevard Lofayette, Louisiana 70506 I Species Profiles:
Life Histories and Environmental Requirements of Coastal Fishes and Invertebrates (South Atlantic)BLUEFISH Fish and Wildlife Service U.S. Department of the Interior Coastal Ecology Group Waterways Experiment Station U.S. Army Corps of Engineers CAAL Biological Report 82(11.96)TR EL-82-4 April 1989 Species. Profiles:
Life Histories and Environmental Requirements of Coastal Fishes and.Invertebrates (South Atlantic)BLUEFISH by J. Douglas Oliver, Michael J. Van Den Avyle, and Earl L. Bozeman, Jr.Georgia Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit School of Forest Resources University of Georgia Athens, GA 30602 Project Officer David Moran U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service National Wetlands Research Center 1010 Gause Boulevard Slidell, LA 70458 Performed for Coastal Ecology Group U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Waterways Experiment Station Vicksburg, MS 39180 and U.S. Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service Research and Development National Wetlands Research Center Washington, DC 20240 This series should be referenced as follows: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 1983-19 .Species profiles:
life histories and environmental requirements of coastal fishes and invertebrates.
U.S.Fish Wildl. Serv. Biol. Rep. 82(11).. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers TR EL-82-4.This profile should be cited as follows: Oliver, J.D., M.J. Van Den Avyle, and E.L. Bozeman, Jr. 1989. Species profiles: life histories and environmental requirements of coastal fishes and invertebrates (South Atlantic)--bluefish.
U.S. Fish Wildl. Serv. Biol. Rep.82(11.96).
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers TR EL-82-4. 13 pp.
PREFACE This species profile is one of a series on coastal aquatic organisms, principally fish, of sport, commercial, or ecological importance.
The profiles are designed to provide coastal managers, engineers, and biologists with a brief comprehensive sketch of the biological characteristics and environmental requirements of the species and to describe how populations of the species may be expected to react to environmental changes caused by coastal development.
Each profile has sections on taxonomy, life history, ecological role, environmental requirements, and economic importance, if applicable.
A three-ring binder is used for this series so that new profiles can be added as they are prepared.This project is jointly planned and financed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.Suggestions or questions regarding this report should be directed to one of the following addresses.
Information Transfer Specialist National Wetlands Research Center U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service NASA-Slidell Computer Complex 1010 Gause Boulevard Slidell, LA 70458 or U.S. Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Station Attention:
WESER-C Post Office Box 631 Vicksburg, MS 39180 iii CONVERSION TABLE Mul ti ply millimeters (mm)centimeters (cm)meters (m)meters Wm)kilometers (km)kilometers (km)square meters (m 2)square kilometers (kM 2)hectares (ha)liters (I)cubic meters (m 3)cubic meters (m 3)milligrams (mg)grams (g)kilograms (kg)metric tons (t)metric tons (t)kilocalories
.(kcal)Celsius degrees ('C)inches inches feet (ft)fathoms statute miles (mi)nautical miles (nmi)square feet (ft 2)square miles (mi 2)acres gallons (gal)cubic feet (ft 3)acre-feet Metric to U.S. Customary BY 0.03937 0.3937 3.281 0.5468 0.6214 0.5396 10.76 0.3861 2.471 0.2642 35.31 0.0008110 0.00003527 0.03527 2.205 2205.0 1.102 3.968 1.8(OC) + 32 U.S. Customary to Metric 25.40 2.54 0.3048 1.829 1.609 1.852 To Obtain inches inches feet fathoms statute miles nautical miles square feet square miles acres gallons cubic feet acre-feet ounces ounces pounds pounds short tons British thermal units Fahrenheit degrees millimeters centimeters meters meters kilometers kilometers 0.0929 2.590 0.4047 3.785 0.02831 1233.0 28350.0 28.35 0.4536 0.00045 0.9072 0.2520 0.5556 (OF -32)ounces (oz)ounces (oz)pounds (lb)pounds (lb)short tons (ton)British thermal units (Btu)Fahrenheit degrees (OF)square meters square kilometers hectares liters cubic meters cubic meters milligrams grams kilograms metric tons metric tons kilocalories Celsius degrees iv CONTENTS Page PREFACE......
........................................................
iii CONVERSION TABLE .......................................................
iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
............................................................
vi NOMENCLATURE/TAXONOMY/RANGE
.................................................
I MORPHOLOGY AND IDENTIFICATION AIDS .........................................
1 REASON FOR INCLUSION IN SERIES ...........
.................................
3 LIFE HISTORY ... ........................................................
3 Migration of Adults and Spawning .........................................
3 Eggs and Larvae ..........................................................
6 Juveniles and Adults .....................................................
6 GROWTH CHARACTERISTICS
.....................................................
7 THE FISHERY ................................................................
8 ECOLOGICAL ROLE ............................................................
9 ENVIRONMENTAL REQUIREMENTS
.................................................
9 Temperature and Salinity .................................................
9 Dissolved Oxygen ........................................................
10 Depth .......................
- ....................
10 Water Movement and Turbidity
.........................
....................
10 LITERATURE CITED ...........................................................
11 V ACKNOWLEDGMENTS We thank Stuart Wilk, U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service, Sandy Hook Laboratory, Sandy Hook, New Jersey, and L. E. Barger, U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service, Panama City, Florida,for reviewing this manuscript.
vi Figure 1. Bluefish.BLUEFISH NOMENCLATURE/TAXONOMY/RANGE Scientific name .... Pomatomus saltatrix (Linnaeus)
Preferred common name .........Bluefish (Figure 1)Other common names ...............
Blue, snapper, horse mackerel, Hatteras blue, tailor Class ....................
Osteichthyes Order ......................
Perciformes Family .....................
Pomatomidae (P. saltatrix is the only species.)Geographic range: The bluefish occurs in most temperate coastal regions of all oceans except the north and cen-tral Pacific Ocean (Briggs 1960;Wilk 1977). It is abundant in estu-arine and continental shelf waters of the east coast of North America from Nova Scotia southward to Flori-da and occurs in the Gulf. of Mexico westward to Texas (Dahlberg 1975).In the South Atlantic Region (Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, southward to Cape Canaveral, Florida), blue-fish are most abundant along the coasts of North Carolina and Flori-da (Figure 2).MORPHOLOGY AND IDENTIFICATION AIDS The first dorsal fin has 8-9 spines; the second dorsal fin has 24-25 rays; and the, anal fin has 2-3 spines and 26 rays. The number of lateral line scales is usually 95.Adults are bluish or greenish above and silvery below and have a blackish spot at the base of the pectoral fins (Jordan and Evermann 1896). The large lower jaw projects beyond the upper jaw (Dahlberg 1975). The head is proportionally larger in advanced 1 NORTH CAROLINA-- t'%'N SOUTH CAROLINA LESTON ,SAVANNAH ATLANTIC OCEAN Coastal distribution
-Major abundance 4 0 j MILES 0 so 100 0 SO 100 KILOMETERS Figure 2. Distribution of the centers of abundance are along bluefish in the South Atlantic Region. Major North Carolina and Florida.2 juveniles than in adults (Lippson and Moran 1974). Larvae and juveniles were described by Deuel et al. (1966)and Norcross et al. (1974).Two stocks of bluefish have been identified along the Atlantic coast.One stock spawns during late summer in continental shelf waters in the Middle Atlantic Region (Cape Cod, Massachusetts, to Cape Hatteras), and the other spawns during spring at the margin of the Gulf Stream in the South Atlantic Region between Cape Hatteras and northern Florida (Lassiter 1962;Kendall and Walford 1979). The two stocks are distinguishable through multivariate analysis of differences in body proportions (morphometrics) as well as growth patterns on the scales of selected year classes. Compared with summer-spawned yearlings of the Middle Atlantic Region, spring-spawned yearlings of the South Atlantic have a relatively larger head and pectoral fin, larger eye in proportion to the head, longer maxillary bone, and shorter dorsal, anal, and ventral fins (Wilk 1977).REASON FOR INCLUSION IN SERIES The bluefish is an important recreational and commercial fish along the Atlantic seaboard; the recreational fishery predominates in the South Atlantic Region (Anderson 1978). In the charter boat fishery from Cape Hatteras to South Carolina, the catch of bluefish is exceeded only by that of king mackerel, Scomberomorus cavalla (Manooch et al.1981). Recreational bluefish harvest for 1983 in the South Atlantic Region was about 10 million fish--or about 23% of the total east coast recreational catch of bluefish (NMFS 1985). Due to their abundance and high trophic level, bluefish play a major ecological role in estuarine and continental shelf waters and are dependent on these habitats for spawning and nursery areas. No other Atlantic coast species is throughout such a wide variety of habitats (Wilk as abundant range and 1980).LIFE HISTORY Miqration of Adults and Spawning The bluefish is a migratory pelagic species that generally travels northward in spring and summer and southward in fall and winter along the Atlantic seaboard.
Concentrations of bluefish are greatest from northern North Carolina to Cape Cod in summer and along the Florida coast in winter (Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council 1982). Bluefish in the Gulf of Mexico apparently remain separate from those along the Atlantic coast (Lyman 1974; Barger et al. 1978). The present discussion is limited to the two stocks of bluefish that occur along the Atlantic coast.In the South Atlantic Region, spawning occurs primarily during spring in waters just shoreward of the Gulf Stream, from southern North Caro-lina to Florida (Figures 3a, 4a).Ripening bluefish arrive along the coast of the Carolinas in mid-spring.
Males with free-flowing milt are more commonly found in coastal areas than are ripe females because the females move offshore before their final stage of ripening (Deuel et al. 1966).There is evidence of relatively minor fall and winter spawning just south of Cape Hatteras (Kendall and Walf'ord 1979).In the Middle Atlantic Region, spawning occurs in summer (May -Sep-tenmber) in waters over the continen-tal shelf (Figures 3b, 4b; Lippson and lkran 1974; Kendall and Walford 1979; Smith et al. 1979). Norcross et al. (1974) found that bluefish north of Cape Hatteras spawned mainly over the outer half of the continen-tal shelf; 80% of the eggs they col-lected were taken more than 55 km 3
- a. Spring-spawning
- b. Summer-apawning 4Wj a spawning ama 4pm ý 1-2 months, summer 4- 5-6 months, fall 4*...... 12-13 months, spring Figure 3. Migration routes of bluefish from sawning ae-24 months, fall.e...... 9-11 months, spring hatching until I year old.4
- a. Spring-apawning
- b. Summer-spawning apawning area-..1+ years, fall 4---- -2 years, spring*e* e*e -2years, fall spawning area 1+ years, fall 4- ---- --- -> 2 years, spring and summer 40** ** _ 2 years, Nill Figure 4. Migration routes of bluefish over 1 year old.5 from shore. The depth at which spawning occurs is not known.In the Middle Atlantic Region, significant nunmers of summer-spawning adult bluefish that have apparently completed spawning move inshore into bays and inlets of Long Island Sound and the New Jersey coast during July and August (Figure 4b; Lund and Maltezos 1970). In the South Atlantic Region, younger, bluefish (aged < 2 years for spring spawners and aged between 1 and 2 years for summer spawners) inhabit nearshore areas during their southerly migration in fall and winter (Figures 3a, 4a, 4b;Wilk 1977).Eggs and Larvae Female bluefish weighing 1.9-2.7 kg contained 600,000-1,400,000 eggs (Lassiter 1962). Fertilized eggs are spherical, 0.9-1.2 mm in diameter, and have an oil globule of 0.22-0.30 mm.In laboratory studies, eggs hatched after 46-48 h at 20 °C, and newly hatched larvae were 2.0-2.2 mm total length (TL) (Deuel et al. 1966).Kendall and Walford (1979) collected larvae as small as 3 mm standard length (SL) in outer continental shelf waters of the South Atlantic Region.Detailed descriptions of embryonic and early larval stages of bluefish were published by Deuel et al. (1966);Norcross et al. (1974). described development from the stage immediately after yolk sac absorption to the early juvenile stage at 17 mm SL.During spring, concentrations of larvae in the South Atlantic Region were greatest off the New River, North Carolina, and Charleston, South Carolina, near the outer edge of the continental shelf (Kendall and Walford 1979). These larvae apparently are carried northward past Cape Hatteras by the Gulf Stream in April and May (Figure 3) and are dispersed over the continental slope of the Middle Atlantic Region (Kendall and Walford 1979; Smith 1980; Powles 1981).Collins and Stender (1987), however, presented evidence for southward and seaward migration of bluefish larvae that came from spring spawning in the South Atlantic Bight. Larvae from the minor fall and winter spawning in southern waters may find their way inshore south of Cape Hatteras, as indicated by the presence of a few juveniles there during winter (Kendall.and Walford 1979; Powles 1981).Morse et al. (1987) found a high abundance of larvae in summer on the continental shelf of the Middle Atlantic Region. Larvae spawned in the Middle Atlantic Region remain offshore until late summer and then apparently move southward in fall.Their distribution in winter is unknown (Kendall and Walford 1979).Larval development takes place in outer continental shelf waters, primarily within 6 m of the surface, at temperatures of 18-26 °C and salinities of 30-32 ppt (Kendall and Walford 1979). Larvae undergo diel vertical migrations, concentrating at depths near 4 m during midday and at the surface at night (Kendall and Naplin 1981).Juveniles and Adults Bluefish of 13-17 mm SL have full fin ray counts and most of the other characteristics of adults (Lippson and Moran 1974; Norcross et al. 1974).Juveniles from the spring spawn in the South Atlantic Region occur in outer continental shelf waters of the Middle Atlantic Region from April through June (Kendall and Walford 1979). As inshore waters warm, they move shoreward across the continental shelf into estuaries between Cape May, New Jersey, and Long Island, New York, where they reach fork lengths (FL) of 180-200 mm by fall (Wilk 1977; Figure 3). Nyman and Conover (1987) suggest that most young-of-the-year bluefish in New York waters come from the spring spawning area. Juveniles from 6 the summer spawn i n the Middle Atlantic Region probably remain at sea, migrate south of Cape Hatteras in early fall, and spend the winter offshore, 'appearing in the sounds of North Carolina during the following spring (Kendall and Walford 1979).Bluefish typically reach sexual maturity by age III at about 450 mm FL (Wilk 1977). Adults move in schools of similar-sized individuals; these schools remain loosely associated to form large aggregations that sometimes extend over many square kilometers along, the coastline.
Movement patterns are determined by several environmental factors, among which temperature and photoperiod are probably the most important (Olla and Studholme 1971).In fall and winter, most adult bluefish from both Atlantic Coast stocks migrate southward.
and overwinter along the east coast of Florida. Tagging studies have indicated that the southward migration in fall is closer to shore than the subsequent northerly migration in spring. (Wilk 1977). Some adults overwinter between Cape Hatteras and Cape Lookout, North Carolina, where*large fish (4-9 kg) have been taken in trawls and gill nets from December through March (J. L. Ross, North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries, Morehead City; pers. comm.).GROWTH CHARACTERISTICS Growth rate of larva-l bluefish is initially very rapid but decreases after about 3 days. Deuel et al.(1966), who determined growth rates for Long Island bluefish larvae from eggs that were fertilized, and hatched in a laboratory, reported average total lengths of 2.1 mm at hatching, 2.8 mm on day 1, 3.0 mm on day 2, 3.2 mm on day 3, and 3.3 mm on day 4.Growth rates for laboratory reared fish, however, may not be repre-sentative of growth at sea.No data on growth of juvenile bluefish have been published, but some information is available on juvenile sizes at different times of the year from collections taken in the Middle and South Atlantic Regions.Spring-spawned fish collected in Middle Atlantic Region estuaries were 25-35 mm FL during summer and grew to about 200 mm FL by fall. Summer-spawned fish were about 230 mm FL when collected in North Carolina waters the following spring and about 290 mm FL in fall (Wilk.1977).
Male and female bluefish grow at about the same rate (Hamer 1959; Richards 1976). Von Bertalanffy growth equations have been developed for bluefish collected from North Carolina (Lassiter 1962)and from South Carolina to southern Florida (Barger, unpublished MS ), but differences in aging techniques and stocks sampled make comparisons difficult.
Wilk (1977) published the most comprehensive summary of age and growth of bluefish along the Atlantic seaboard (Table 1).Length-weight relationships for North Carolina bluefish are similar to those for bluefish collected from South Carolina to southern Florida.Equations useful for predicting weight (W, in grams) from fork length (mm)are W = (2.45 x 10- 5)FL 2.9 0 3 for fish collected off North Carolina (Lassiter 1962) and W = (1.49 x 10-5)FL 2.9 8 5 for fish collected in South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida (Barger, unpublished MS ). Wilk et al. (1978)reported the predictive equation for bluefish collected in the New York Bight as W = (1.12 x 10 -5)FL3"036 7
Table 1. Average size of bluefish of different ages collected from Rhode Island to Florida, 1963-68 (Wilk 1977). Averages were based on about 25,000 determinations of age (using scales) and 7,500 measurements of weight.Age Fork length Weight (cm) (kg)1 21 0.1 II 35 0.6 III 46 1.3 IV 55 2.2 V 62 3.2 VI 66 4.2 VII 72 5.0 VIII 76 5.8 IX 78 6.3 X 80 6.8 XI 82 7.3 XlI 83 7.6 XIII 85 8.0 XIV 86 8.4 THE FISHERY The recreational catch of blue-fish in the South Atlantic Region generally exceeds the commercial catch. In 1983, anglers caught about 10 million bluefish, of which 8.2 million were from North Carolina, 1.4 million were from Florida, 0.2 million were from South Carolina, and 0.2 million were from Georgia (NMFS 1985).The 1979 commercial harvest in the South Atlantic Region was less than 5 million lb. The dependence of adult bluefish on nearshore habitats is reflected by the areas from which most of the recreational catch was taken;60% of the harvest came from areas within 5 km of the shore. Catches from private or charter boats accounted for about 69% of the total bluefish catch, and catches from shore accounted for about 31% (NMFS 1985).Commercial landings of bluefish increased considerably in the late 1970's and early 1980's, primarily due*to increased catches in North Carolina (Table 2). During the early 1970's, long-haul seine fishermen in Pamlico Sound and the Outer Banks landed most of the North Carolina catch, but prices were less than $0.10 per lb.Most of the increase in harvest has come from offshore gillnet catches landings and values, 1976-81 (Mid-Atlantic Table 2. Reported commercial bluefish Fishery Management Council 1982).Commercial landings (thousands of lb)North South Florida Value Year Carolina Carolina Georgia (E. coast) Total (per lb)1976 1,356 1 <1 1,380 2,737 0.10 1977 2,331 10 1 1,500 3,842 0.09 1978 1,948 10 <1 1,230 3,188 0.13 1979 3,407 13 <1 1,348 4,768 0.19 1980 5,444 4 <1 1,762 7,210 0.14 1981 6,610 3 1 2,016 8,626 0.19 8 (J. L. Ross, North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries, Morehead City;pers. comm.) and from the winter trawl fishery, which exploits a variety of pelagic species (Street 1983). The bulk of the commercial bluefish harvest is composed of age I-IV fish (Wilk 1977), but many age V-VII fish are taken commercially from Chesapeake Bay southward to Cape Lookout, North Carolina (J. L. Ross, North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries, Morehead City; pers.comm.). Data on bluefish abundance, mortality rates, recruitment, and other stock characteristics that would be helpful in making management decisions are not available (Wilk 1977).ECOLOGICAL ROLE The feeding ecology of larval and postlarval bluefish is not. well known. The only published account (Kendall and Naplin 1981) indicated that larval bluefish ate mostly copepods, but also fed on cladocerans and invertebrate eggs. Lassiter (1962) reported that the diet of juvenile bluefish from North Carolina consisted of 18% invertebrates (shrimp, Penaeus spp., and squid, Loligo spp.T and 82% vertebrates (predominantly pinfish, La odon rhomboides, and silversides, Menidia spp.).Adult bluefish are visual feeders and are most active during daylight (Olla et al. 1970; Olla and Studholme 1971, 1978). They are pre-dominantly piscivorous; invertebrates play a progressively smaller role in the diet as age of the fish increases (Lassiter 1962; Naughton and Saloman 1984). Important prey in North Caro-lina included other bluefish; butter-fish, Peprilus triacanthus; harvest-fish, P. alepidotus; anchovies, Anchoa spp.; seatrout, Cynoscion spp.; spot, Leiostomus xanthurus; and, Atlantic menhaden, Brevoortia tyrannus (Lassiter 1962). Naughton and Saloman (1984) described the food habits of 283 bluefish collected along North and South Carolina in 1977-1981; a prefer-ence for schooling coastal fish species was evident--the most common prey included Sciaenidae, Clupeidae, Mugilidae, and Engraulidae.
A list of the known food of bluefish collec-ted along the entire Atlantic coast contained 16 invertebrate and 67 vertebrate species (Wilk 1977).Only large predators, such as sharks (particularly mako sharks, Isurus spp.), tunas, swordfish (Xphas gladius), and wahoo (Acanthocybium
--solanderi) prey on adult bluefisP.
Possible competitors are spanish mackerel, -Scomberomorus maculatus; king mackerel, S. cavalla;striped bass, Morone saxatilis; large weakfish, Cynoscion ri j;FAtlantic bonito, Sarda sarda; and little tunny, Euthynnus a-letteratus (C.S. Manooch, National Marine Fisheries Service, Southeast Fisheries Center, Beaufort, North Carolina; pers. comm.).ENVIRONMENTAL REQUIREMENTS Temperature and Salinity Newly spawned bluefish larvae have been found in the South Atlantic Region just shoreward of the Gulf Stream at temperatures of 20-26 °C and salinities of 35-38 ppt (Kendall and Walford 1979; Powles 1981). Spawning in the Middle Atlantic Region occurs at slightly lower temperatures of 17-24 °C and salinities of 30-32 ppt (Norcross et al. 1974; Kendall and Walford 1979; Smith 1980). Bluefish up to about 250 mm TL require temper-atures higher than 10 'C for survival (Lund and Maltezos 1970), but adults may be able to survive brief exposures to temperatures as low as 7.5 °C (Wilk 1977). Adults held in a laboratory were able to survive temperatures as high as 30.4 °C (Olla and Studholme 1971). In northeast and east central 9 Florida, adults occur in nearshore areas where temperatures exceed 27 'C for prolonged periods (Padgett 1970).Dissolved Oxygen Data describing effects of dis-solved oxygen concentration on blue-fish are not available.
However, two situations where. bluefish avoided areas of low dissolved oxygen have been reported.
One report comes from observations of small bluefish preying on spawning Atlantic silversides, Menidia menidia (Middaugh et al.1981). Dissolved oxygen concentration was lowest (less than 1 mg/l) in the area of most intense spawning;bluefish penetrated no further than the 4 mg/l isopleth.
In another case, adult bluefish were absent from areas of the New York Bight having depressed dissolved oxygen during summer, but specific oxygen levels avoided were not determined (Azarovitz et al.1979).Depth Bluefish are seldom found.beyond the continental shelf, but juveniles and adults occupy nearshore habitats as shallow as 0.15 m (De Sylva 1976).A bluefish can secrete gas into its swim bladder at the fastest rate known for any fish; consequently it can rapidly change depths over a large range (Bentley and Wiley 1982).Water Movement and Turbidity Adult bluefish forced to swim against water currents in a laboratory system maintained speeds of 4.0 to 4.6 body lengths per second for at least 30 min. At intermediate and high swimming velocities, bluefish can shift to ram gill ventilation, transferring the workload of venti-lation from the branchial to the swimming musculature.
This transfer results in significant metabolic savings during rapid swimming (Freadman 1979). Bluefish are power-ful swimmers and can swim in turbulent waters. Ogilvy and Dubois (1981) determined that turbulence introduced into a swimming chamber did not reduce the fish's maximum swimming speed.Turbidity may affect bluefish feeding. Adult bluefish-are visual feeders (Olla et al. 1970), and anglers are usually more successful when water is relatively clear than when it is turbid (Padgett 1970).10 LITERATURE CITED Anderson, R.D. 1978.spawning of bluefish.24:335-339.
Feeding and Sea Front.Azarovitz, T.R., C.J. Byrne, M.J.Silverman, B.L. Freeman, W.G. Smith, S.C. Turner, B.A. Halgren, and P.J.Festa. 1979. Effects on finfish and lobster. Pages 295-314 in R.L.Swanson and C.J. Sinderman-, eds.Oxygen depletion and associated benthic mortalities in New York Bight, 1976. NOAA Prof. Pap. No.11. 345 pp.Barger, L.E. Age and growth of bluefish.
Pomatomus saltatrix (Linneaus), from the northeastern Gulf of Mexico and the southeastern coast of the United States. U.S.National Marine Fisheries Service.Panama City, FL. Unpubli shed manuscript.
Barger, L.E., L.A. Collins, and J.H.Finucane.
1978. First record of bluefish larvae, Pomatomus saltatrix, in the Gulf ofMe-xico.
Northeast Gulf Sci. 2:145-148.
Bentley, T.B., and M.L. Wiley. 1982.Intra- and inter-specific variation in buoyancy of some estuarine fishes. Env. Biol. Fishes 7:77-81.Briggs, J.C. 1960. Fishes of world-wide (circumtropical) distribution.
Copeia 1960:171-180.
Collins, M.R., and B.W. Stender.1987. Larval king mackerel (Sconteromorus caval I a), Spanish mackerel (S. maculatus), and bluefish (Pomatomus saltatrix) off the southeast coast of the United States, 1973-1980.
Bull. Mar. Sci.41:822-823.
Dahlberg, M.D. 1975. Guide to coastal fishes of Georgia and nearby States. University of Georgia Press, Athens. 187 pp.De Sylva, D.P. 1976. Attacks by bluefish (Pomatomus saltatrix) on humans in South Florida. Copeia 1976:196-198.
Deuel, D.G., J.R. Clark, and A.J.Mansueti.
1966. Description of embryonic and early larval stages of bluefish, Pomatomus saltatrix.
Trans. Am. FishF.S7c.
95:2T72=.Freadman, M.A. 1979. Swimming energetics of striped bass (Morone saxatilis) and bluefish (Pomatomus saltatrix):
Gill ventilation and swimmingmetabolism.
J. Exp. Biol.83:217-230.
Hamer, P.E. 1959. Age and growth studies of the bluefish (Pomatomus saltatrix Linnaeus) of the New York Bight. M.S. Thesis. Rutgers University, New Brunswick, N.J.Jordan, D.S., and B.W. Evermann.1896. The fishes of North and Middle America. Bull. U.S. Natl.Mus. No. 47. 4 parts. 3,313 pp.Kendall, A.W., Jr., and L.A. Walford.1979. Sources and distribution of bluefish, Pomatomus saltatrix, 11 larvae and juveniles off the east coast of the United States. U. S.Natl. Mar. Fish. Serv. Fish. Bull.77:213-227.
Kendall, A.W., Jr., and N.A. Naplin.1981. Diel-depth distribution of summer ichthyoplankton in the Middle Atlantic Bight. U. S. Natl. Mar.Fish. Serv. Fish. Bull. 79:705-726.
Lassiter, R.R. 1962. Life history aspects of the bluefish, Pomatomus saltatrix (Linnaeus), from ThFe coast of North Carolina.
M.S. Thesis.North Carolina)
State College, Raleigh. 103 pp.Lippson, A.J., and R.L. Moran. 1974.Manual of identification of early developmental stages of fishes of the Potomac River Estuary. Power Plant Siting Program, Maryland Dept.Nat. Resour., PPSP-MP-13.
282 pp.Lund, W.A., Jr., and G.C. Maltezos.1970. Movements and migrations of the bluefish, Pomatomus saltatrix, tagged in waters of New York and southern New England. Trans. Am.Fish. Soc. 99:719-725.
Lyman, H. 1974. Successful bluefish-ing. International Marine Publ.Co., Camden, Me. 112 pp.Manooch, C.S., III, L.E. Abbas, and J.L. Ross. 1981. A biological and economic analysis of the North Carolina charter boat fishery. Mar.Fish. Rev. 43(8):1-11.
Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Coun-cil.. 1982. Bluefish fishery man-agement plan. Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council, Dover, Del. 63 pp.Middaugh, D.P., G.I. Scott, and J.M.Dean. 1981. Reproductive behavior of the Atlantic silverside, Menidia menidia (Pisces, Atherinidae).
Env.Biol. Fishes 6:269-276.
Morse, W.W., M.P. Fahay, and W.G.Smith. 1987. MARMAP surveys of the Continental Shelf from Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, to Cape Sable, Nova Scotia (1977-1984).
Atlas No. 2. Annual distribution patterns of fish larvae. NOAA Tech.Memo. NMFS-F/NEC-47.
Naughton, S.P., *and C.H. Saloman.1984. Food of bluefish (Pomatomus saltatrix) from the U.S. South Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS-SEFC-150.
37 pp.NMFS (National Marine Fisheries Serv-ice, U.S. Department of Commerce).
1985. Marine recreational fishery statistics survey, Atlantic and Gulf Coasts, 1983-1984.
U.S. Natl. Mar.Fish. Serv. Curr. Fish. Stat. No.8326. 222 pp.Norcross, J.J., S.L. Richardson, W.H.Massman, and E.B. Joseph. 1974.Development of young bluefish (Pomatomus saltatrix) and distribu-tion of eggs and young in Virginian coastal waters. Trans. Am. Fish.Soc. 103:477-497.
Nyman, R.M., and D.O. Conover. 1987.The relation between spawning season and the recruitment of young-of-the-year bluefish, Pomatomus saltatrix, to New York. U.S. Natl.Mar. Fish. Serv. Fish. Bull. 86:237-250.Ogilvy, C.S., and A.B. Dubois. 1981.The hydrodynamic drag of swimming bluefish (Pomatomus saltatrix) in different intensities of turbulence:
variation with changes of buoyancy.J. Exp. Biol. 92:67-85.Olla, B.L., H.M. Katz, and A.L.Studholme.
1970. Prey capture and feeding motivation in the bluefish, Pomatomus saltatrix.
Copeia 1970: Olla, B.L., and A.L. Studholme.
1971.The effect of temperature on the activity of bluefish, Pomatomus 12 saltatrix L. Biol. Bull. (Woods Hole) 141:337-349.
Olla, B.L., and A.L. Studholme.
1978.Comparative aspects of the activity rhythms of tautog, Tautoga onitis, bluefish, Pomatomus saltatrix, and Atlantic mackerel, Scomber scombrus, as related to their life habits.Pages 131-151 in J.E. Thorpe, ed.Rhythmic actTvity of fishes.Academic Press, New York. 312 pp.Padgett, H.R. 1970. Notes on Florida bluefish.
Underwater Nat. 6(4):40-41.Powles, H. 1981.. Distribution and* movements of neustonic young of estuarine dependent spp., Pomatomus saltatrix) and estuarine independent aena spp.) fishes off the Southeastern United States.Rapp. P.-V. Reun. Cons. Int. Explor.Mer 178:207-209.
Smith, W.G., A.W. Kendall, Jr., P.L.Berrien, and M.P. Fayhay. 1979.Principal spawning areas and times of marine fishes. Cape Sable to Cape Hatteras.
U.S. Natl. Mar. Fish.Serv. Fish. Bull. 76:911-915.
Smith, young tions Street, 1982 Coast W.G. 1980. What fish tell about Underwater Nat.studies of fish popula-12(4):9-16.
M.W. 1983. A look at the commercial catch. Tar Heel 18(2):1-5.
Wilk, S.J. 1977. Biological and fisheries data on bluefish, Pomatomus saltatrix (Linnaeus).
U.S. Natl. Mar. Fish. Serv., Tech.Ser. Rep. 11, Northeast Fisheries Center, Highlands, N.J. 56 pp.Wilk, S.J.fishery.40-45.1980. The recreational Underwater Nat. 12(4): Richards, S.W. 1 and food of b saltatrix) from Island Sound November 1975.Soc. 105:523-525.
976. Age, growth, luefish (Pomatomus East-Central Long from July through Trans. Am. Fish.Wilk, S.J., W.W. Morse, and D.E.Ralph. 1978. Length-weight rela-tionships of fishes collected in the New York Bight. Bull. New Jersey Acad. Sci. 23:58-64.13 50272-101 REPORT DOCUMENTATION
- 1. REPORT NO. 2. 3- Recient's Accession No.PAGE Biological Report 82(11.96)*
- 4. Trtle end Subtitle .S. & Report oate Species Profiles:
Life Histories and Environmental Requirements of April 1989 Coastal Fishes and Invertebrates (South Atlantic)--Bluefish 6.7.Autho,()
J. Douglas Oliver, Michael J. Van Den Avyle and Earl L. 6. Performing Organization Rapt. No.Bozeman, Jr.9. Performing Organization Neme and Address 10. Proiact/Task/Work Unit No.Georgia Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit School of Forest Resources
- 11. COMtC) or Grant(G) No.University of Georgia (C)Athens, GA 30602 12. Sponsoring Organizatlion Name end Address (G)U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 1,. TypeOf Report &Perodcovered Fish and Wildlife Service Waterways Experiment Station National Wetlands Research Center P.O. Box 631 Washington, DC .20240 Vicksburg, MS 39180 14.IS. Supplementary Notes*U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Report No. TR EL-82-4 16. Abstract (Umit: 200 words)Species profiles are literature summaries of the life history, distribution, and-environ-mental 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 theSouthA-tlantic 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 seaboara.In the South Atlantic Region, spawning occurs primarily during spring in waters just shoreward of the Gulf Stream from southern North Carolina to Florida.Most larvae are carried northward bythe 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.17. Document Analysis a. Descriptors Estuaries Fishes Growth b. Identiflers/Openl.nded Terms Bluefish Spawning Pomatomus saltatrix Fisheries Habitat c. COSATI Fleld/Group IS. Availabilty Statement
- 19. Sacurt Class (This Report) 21. No. of Pages Unl imi ted Di stri buti on Uncl as sified 13 20. Security Class 9'his Pace) 22. PH"c uncl assiftied (St* ANSI-M3.18)
OPTIONAL FORM 272 (4-771 (Formerly NTIS-35)Department of Commerce As the Nation's principal conservation agency, the Department of the Interior has responsibility for most of our nationally owned public lands and natural resources.
This includes fostering the wisest use of our land and water resources, protecting our fish and wildlife, preserving the environmental and cultural values of our national parks and historical places, and providing for the enjoy-ment of life through outdoor recreation.
The Department assesses our energy and mineral resources and works to assure that their development is in the best interests of all our people. The Depart-ment also has a major responsibility for American Indian reservation communities and for people who live in island territories under U.S.administration.
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE TAKE PRIDE in America stI %I A I M I UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE National Wetlands Research Center NASA-Slidell Computer Complex 1010 Gause Boulevard Slidell, LA 70458 OFFICIAL BUSINESS PENALTY FOR PRIVATE USE, $300 POSTAGE AND FEES PAID UAL. DEPARTMENT OF THE iNTERIOR WT-423