Saltwater
Bluefish
Where to find them, how to catch them and the tackle to use.
01Introduction
The bluefish is an aggressive, schooling predator with a greenish-blue back, silvery sides and a mouth full of razor-sharp, triangular teeth. It is the only member of its family and is found in oceans around the world. Bluefish attack bait and lures with abandon, fight hard, and often travel in schools of similar-sized fish, from late-summer "snappers" a few inches long to adults around 40 inches.
02Where to Catch
Range: temperate and subtropical oceans worldwide. In the U.S., bluefish range from Nova Scotia to Florida on the Atlantic coast and from Florida to Texas in the Gulf.
Habitat: open coastal water, the surf, inlets and bays. Bluefish follow schools of menhaden, anchovies, squid and other bait, so the bait is the best guide to where they are.
Seasonal movements: along the Atlantic coast, bluefish move north in spring and summer and south in fall and winter. In summer they concentrate from Maine to Cape Hatteras; in winter most are offshore and south of Cape Hatteras. Young bluefish fill bays and estuaries in late summer before joining the fall migration.
03How to Catch
Casting lures
Match the lure to the conditions and the bait:
- Poppers and walking plugs for fish feeding on top. Hard-plastic plugs hold up best to bluefish teeth.
- Metal jigs and spoons cast long distances and imitate slim baitfish like sand eels and silversides. They can also be jigged vertically from a boat.
- Bucktail jigs for blues holding deeper in inlets or feeding below the surface, especially early in the season when they won't chase a fast lure.
- Large, tough soft plastics rigged on jigheads or weedless hooks, especially when blues are feeding on squid.
Bait and chumming
Chunks of menhaden or other cut fish work in the surf and from boats. From a boat, chumming draws schools within range.
Trolling
Trolling swimming plugs, deep divers and skirted trolling lures on a wire leader covers water until you find a school.
Snappers
For young bluefish in bays and harbors, fish a small hook baited with spearing under a bobber, or cast small bucktails, spoons or a 1/8-ounce metal lure on ultralight tackle.
04Tackle
Use a short wire leader to prevent bite-offs, and choose lures with heavy-duty hooks and split rings. Replacing treble hooks with single inline hooks makes unhooking faster and safer. Ultralight spinning tackle is plenty for snappers. Bluefish seasons and limits are regulated and change often, so check your state's current rules.
05Questions anglers ask
Do I need a wire leader for bluefish?
Usually, yes. Bluefish have razor-sharp teeth that cut monofilament and braid, so anglers often tie a short wire leader to the lure or hook to prevent bite-offs.
What are snapper blues?
Snappers are young-of-the-year bluefish, just a few inches long, that fill bays and harbors in late summer. Catch them with a small hook baited with spearing under a bobber, or by casting small bucktails, spoons or a 1/8-ounce metal lure on ultralight tackle. It's fun fishing for anglers of all ages.
How do I unhook a bluefish safely?
Their teeth are razor sharp, so keep your fingers clear of the mouth. Swapping treble hooks on plugs for single inline hooks makes unhooking easier on both you and the fish.
When do bluefish show up?
Bluefish migrate like birds, moving north along the Atlantic coast in spring and summer and south in fall and winter. In the Northeast they're around from roughly April to October, and surf anglers target them along the beaches in fall.