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Bluefish

(U.S. Atlantic, Wild-caught)

Rating:
Once deemed overfished, U.S. Atlantic bluefish populations have now recovered. Bycatch and habitat concerns continue, however, making this fish a "Good Alternative."

Market Names:
Blue, Hatteras Blue, Chopper

Consumer Notes:
Bluefish is known by a number of different names: blue, chopper, elf, fatback, greenfish, Hatteras blue, horse mackerel, skipjack, slammer, snap mackerel, taylor and snapper (a small bluefish).

Health Alert:
Environmental Defense Fund has issued a health advisory for bluefish due to high levels of PCBs and mercury.

Summary:
Bluefish is a migratory, open-ocean fish found worldwide. Until the 1990s, bluefish was primarily recreational fish; in recent years, the recreational catch has declined, but the commercial catch has remained relatively constant.

Most bluefish are caught commercially with gillnets and there is a concern about the bycatch of marine mammals. However, gillnets used to catch bluefish are generally small-mesh nets, which have the lowest marine mammal bycatch rates of all gillnet mesh sizes.

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