Bluefish fishing in Florida

Bluefish are aggressive, schooling predators that arrive on Florida's Atlantic beaches, inlets and piers in the cooler months, moving south with falling water temperatures, and show up along the Gulf coast mainly in spring and fall. They chase mullet, menhaden and glass minnows in the surf, often in frenzied blitzes with birds diving overhead, and they feed best in moving water on a rising tide with some chop. Cast metal spoons, Gotcha plugs or poppers into the action and retrieve fast, or fish cut mullet on the bottom in the surf trough. Use 15 to 30 lb line and always add a short wire leader or a heavy bite leader, because their razor teeth cut mono easily. They are fun on light spinning tackle and can reach good sizes in winter. Handle bluefish with great care: they snap reflexively even out of the water, so use pliers or a lip grip and keep fingers well away from the mouth. They are best eaten fresh and bled right away. Check current FWC rules before keeping one.