England area. Bluefish spawned during the summer apparently remain at sea and 

 migrate south of Cape Hatteras in early fall and spend the winter offshore, 

 reappearing in the sounds of North Carolina in the spring (Wilk 1982). 



Bluefish are voracious predators that feed predominantly on pelagic 

 species including a large variety of fishes and invertebrates, and 

 occasionally on benthic organisms. 



During recent years commercial and recreational harvests have been 

 increasing, as have the abundance indices (Anderson 1980). 



Bottom Trawl Survey Results 



The spring and autumn distributions over the time series are shown in 

 Figures 12.1 and 12.2. The plots confirm what is known of seasonal bluefish 

 movement and distribution in the Mid-Atlantic. The spring distribution plot 

 (Figure 12.1) indicates that bluefish are rarely caught north of the Virginia 

 Capes during that time of year. A spring plot (Figure 12.3) from the more 

 synoptic 1976-1979 series (see "Methods") shows an even more southerly 

 occurrence. Traditionally, by mid-to-late May, significant numbers of 

 bluefish are caught by recreational anglers throughout the coastal regions of 

 the Mid-Atlantic. Occasional offshore winter catches, and the rapidity of 

 their appearance during May, support the possiblity that they overwinter 

 beyond the shelf edge in southern portions of the Mid-Atlantic (Wilk 1977). 

 The autumn plot (Figure 12.2) shows a concentration in coastal areas 

 throughout the region. The offshore distribution in autumn probably would be 

 continuous to southern portions of Georges Bank. In recent years, large 

 catches have been made during summer and autumn east of the study area on 



277 



