Able et a\: Use of ocean and estuarine habitats by young-of the-year Pomatomus sa/tatnx 



213 



these habitats appear to share some characteristics with 

 estuarine bluefish, such as monthly occurrence in the sum- 

 mer, size composition, growth, and food habits. The excep- 

 tion is that the smaller, summer-spawned cohort may be 

 relatively more abundant in ocean habitats. This possible 

 distinction should be considered when assessing the impor- 

 tance of different cohorts to recruitment. Another exception 

 is that the degree of residency varied between the estuary 

 and the ocean with higher recapture rates on at least one 

 estuarine beach. Further study is necessary, however, to 

 resolve the degree to which ocean bluefish are resident 

 there. The available data suggest that their movements 

 may be much more dynamic in the ocean. 



Although YOY bluefish are clearly not obligate estuarine 

 users because of the large numbers found in coastal wa- 

 ters, it will take more detailed studies of bluefish and other 

 "estuarine-dependent" species to determine if their use of 

 estuarine or ocean habitats is facultative, varies annually 

 or varies with different cohorts. This view is in keeping 

 with the "basin model" of MacCall (1990), which recognizes 

 a variety of factors that may influence habitat use. 



Acknowledgments 



A number of individuals assisted with the northern New 

 Jersey ocean beaches sampling, especially Howard Rubin 

 and Bob Will from the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers and 

 Keith Brewer from Barry Vittor and Associates. Collec- 

 tions on southern New Jersey beaches were assisted by 

 Geoff Bell, David Bottinelli, Ryan Nichols, Christian Jeit- 

 ner, Kara Delia Torre, and Brian Rokeach. Geoff Bell also 

 assisted in the analysis of the food habits. David Bottinelli, 

 Ryan Nichols, Christian Jeitner, Kara Delia Torre, and 

 Robert Rinaldi assisted in the tagging experiment. Lindy 

 Barry and Stacy Hagan prepared the figures. Funding 

 from U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service provided for the New 

 Jersey Department of Environmental Protection sampling. 

 The sampling program by the Rutgers University Marine 

 Field Station was funded through a collaborative program 

 with Rutgers University and the National Marine Fisher- 

 ies Service. We are grateful to all of the above. 



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