Spawning occurs in pulses as the schools travel northward. North of Cape Hatteras the spent adults begin heading toward shore for the remainder of the warm season. Smaller ones generally turn west sooner and find their way into Albemarle Sound, Chesapeake Bay, and Delaware Bay, whereas larger ones follow the continental slope farther north and turn west into Long Island Sound and Narragansett Bay, or continue around Cape Cod to the north Atlantic region. The Magnuson Fishery Conservation Management Act of 1976 created a series of regional Fishery Management Councils to develop overall management plans for important species and to coordinate the states' management efforts. In Maryland and Virginia, bluefish are caught year-round, with peak catches earlier in the summer.
Fishing gear employed varies widely from state to state.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Biol. Fishery Management Plan for the Bluefish Fishery. Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council pp 72.