---
title: "Bluefish"
description: "Pomatomus saltatrix — Fish. The bluefish (Pomatomus saltatrix) is the only extant species of the family Pomatomidae."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/animal/bluefish
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Bluefish

> Pomatomus saltatrix — Fish. The bluefish (Pomatomus saltatrix) is the only extant species of the family Pomatomidae.

- Scientific name: *Pomatomus saltatrix*
- Category: `fish` (Fish)
- Habitats: `sea` (Sea & coast)
- iNaturalist observations: 2954
- Wikidata: [Q461432](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q461432)
- iNaturalist taxon: [50984](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/50984)

## Names

- en: Bluefish
- de: Blaubarsch
- es: Anchoa
- fr: Tassergal
- nl: Blauwbaars
- pt: Pomatomidae
- pl: Lufar

## Countries with the most observations

US (1814), AU (436), ES (77), ZA (69), IT (55), GR (43), BR (33), PT (23), HR (20), TR (18), RU (14), UA (12)

## Summary

The bluefish (Pomatomus saltatrix) is the only extant species of the family Pomatomidae. It is a marine pelagic fish found around the world in temperate and subtropical waters, except for the northern Pacific Ocean.  Bluefish are known as tailor in Australia and New Zealand, elf and shad in South Africa.  It is a popular gamefish and food fish.
The bluefish is a moderately proportioned fish, with a broad, forked tail. The spiny first dorsal fin is normally folded back in a groove, as are its pectoral fins. Coloration is a grayish blue-green dorsally, fading to white on the lower sides and belly. Its single row of…

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bluefish

## Photo

![Bluefish](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/bluefish/medium.jpg)

Photo: nickjeff13 · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/394495455

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/bluefish?lang=en` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).