Bluefish (elf, shad) (Pomatomus saltatrix)

Photo by Jason E. Farabaugh on iNaturalist · CC BY 4.0

Fish·Active (October)

Bluefish (elf, shad)

Pomatomus saltatrix

When
Jun–Mar — January, February, March, June, July, August, September, October, November, December. Earlier in the south, later in the north.
Habitat
Surf beaches, rocky points, harbour walls and river mouths wherever baitfish shoal — the Atlantic beaches from Cape Cod to Florida, the Bosphorus and the Black Sea coast, and in South Africa the Cape’s beaches and estuary mouths in summer and the KwaZulu-Natal surf in winter.
Identification
Blue-green above and silver below, with a big head, a jutting lower jaw and a single row of knife-edged teeth. The short, spiny first dorsal fin folds into a groove and runs straight into the long second one, and there are no finlets before the forked tail.
Notes
A fast, schooling predator that drives baitfish into the shallows and keeps attacking after it has fed. South Africa’s elf follow the sardines: summer and autumn fish in the Cape, they move up to KwaZulu-Natal for the winter and spawn there in spring. American bluefish make the same journey, wintering off Florida and summering off New England.
Method
Metal spoons, poppers or a fresh sardine (pilchard) bait on a short wire trace, cast where birds and bait show — best early and late in the day.
Caution
The teeth cut: unhook with long pliers and never wade among feeding fish. In South Africa elf are closed from 1 October to 30 November; otherwise four a day at 30 cm or more on a DFFE recreational permit (online or at the Post Office), and they may not be sold in KwaZulu-Natal. US limits are set by each state and the ASMFC — check before you keep one.

Seasons, size limits and catch limits change every year and differ by water body. Check the current regulations for the local jurisdiction and the water before fishing.

Bluefish (elf, shad) facts

Also called
Elf or shad in South Africa; tailor in Australia; bluefish, blue, chopper and — for young fish — snapper blue in North America. IGFA also lists marine piranha, rock salmon and Hatteras blue.
Family
Pomatomidae — the only living member of its family.
Native range
Warm-temperate and subtropical seas almost worldwide, but absent from the eastern and north-western Pacific. In the eastern Atlantic from Portugal to South Africa, including the Mediterranean and Black Sea, Madeira and the Canaries; in the western Atlantic from Canada and Bermuda to Argentina; along East Africa, Madagascar, southern Oman, south-west India, Australia and New Zealand.
Habitat
Open coastal water over the shelf, most common along surf beaches and rocky headlands in clean, high-energy water; adults also enter estuaries and harbours. From the surface down to about 200 m (650 ft).
Water temperature
Warm-temperate to subtropical. AquaMaps puts its preferred surface water at about 14–27°C (57–81°F), and FishBase notes that it moves to warmer water in winter and cooler water in summer.
Size
Most adults 30–60 cm (12–24 in); the largest measured about 130 cm (51 in).
Record
IGFA all-tackle world record: 14.4 kg (31 lb 12 oz), James Hussey, Hatteras, North Carolina, USA, 30 January 1972. The South African angling record is 10.3 kg (22 lb 11 oz).
Lifespan
Up to about 14 years (FishBase). ASMFC gives 12 years for the US Atlantic stock, and South African elf have been aged to 10.
What it eats
Fish above all — sardines (pilchards), anchovies, menhaden and other shoaling fish — with squid and crustaceans. Elf under 10 cm eat more crustaceans than fish.
Spawning
A batch spawner. South African elf mature at about one year and 25 cm and spawn over 30–75 m of water off KwaZulu-Natal from September to March, peaking October to December. US fish mature at two and spawn in spring and summer between Massachusetts and Florida. A female sheds 400,000 to 2 million eggs.
Young fish
In South Africa, young-of-the-year gather in shallow bays less than 20 m deep along the southern Cape coast. Small American bluefish are called snappers.
Teeth and mouth
A large mouth with a single row of sharp, flattened, knife-edged teeth of even size in each jaw — enough to cut light line and fingers.
Look-alikes
Leerfish (garrick) has a wavy, S-shaped lateral line and black-tipped fin lobes. Greater amberjack has a gap between its dorsal fins and no spine in the second; mackerels have rows of small finlets before the tail, which the bluefish lacks.
Eating
Good when very fresh. The flesh is oily and spoils quickly, so eat it the day it is caught, or smoke it. Like other large predators it carries some mercury — follow local advice on how often to eat it.
Status
Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List (2014). South Africa’s stock was rated overexploited in its last per-recruit assessment; the US Atlantic stock remains under a rebuilding plan but was assessed in 2025 as not overfished.

Interactive

Bluefish: size range

Move the slider from a typical adult to the largest recorded specimen, shown against objects of known size.

45 cm · 18 inmost adults20406080100120140cm61218243036424854ina loaf of bread · 30 cma 4-year-old, lying down · 100 cma canoe paddle · 150 cm

Most adults you'll catch: 30–60 cm (12–24 in).

This bluefish (elf, shad): 45 cm. Longer than a loaf of bread, shorter than a four-year-old.

The record

IGFA all-tackle world record: 14.4 kg (31 lb 12 oz), James Hussey, Hatteras, North Carolina, USA, 30 January 1972. The South African angling record is 10.3 kg (22 lb 11 oz).

Questions people ask about bluefish

Is elf the same fish as bluefish?

Yes. Elf and shad are South African names for Pomatomus saltatrix — the bluefish of North America and the tailor of Australia — a single species found in warm seas almost worldwide.

When is elf season in South Africa?

Elf are closed from 1 October to 30 November. They are summer and autumn fish in the Cape and move up to KwaZulu-Natal for the winter, where they spawn in spring, so the KwaZulu-Natal surf fishes best from about June to September.

Do bluefish bite people?

They can. Bluefish are aggressive and have bitten anglers handling them and, rarely, people in the water among feeding schools. Unhook them with long pliers and keep hands away from the mouth.

How big do bluefish get?

Most are 30–60 cm (12–24 in). The IGFA world record is 14.4 kg (31 lb 12 oz), caught off Hatteras, North Carolina, in 1972; South Africa’s record elf weighed 10.3 kg.

Found in these regions

Checked against these sources ·

Sizes, records and ranges are for the species as a whole; local populations and rules vary. Records change; the record-keeper named above holds the current one.

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Also active in October