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fishing forecast

bluefin driftfish

Psenes pellucidus · Nomeidae · predator

Open-sea fish that accompanies jellyfish and floating algae. It has commercial use, but is little caught and is of no interest to sport fishing.

Also called: peixe-à-deriva-de-nadadeira-azul, derivante aleta azul, bluefin driftfish

Scientific illustration of Bluefin driftfish
maximum
80 cm
location

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period

Reading the weather across 3 global models and 31 simulations…

the species

everything about the bluefin driftfish

overview

who is the bluefin driftfish

Open-sea fish of the family Nomeidae, which associates with jellyfish and patches of floating algae. Adults have a compressed body and dark brown to dark purple color, and juveniles are translucent. It reaches 80 cm. It feeds on zooplankton and small fish. Large adults may stay on the bottom, on continental slopes. It occurs in the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific oceans, and in Latin America there are records from Chile, Peru, French Guiana and Suriname. It has commercial use but little sport-fishing interest.

Essential profile. Identification, where it occurs and rules, with data from FishBase and the cited regulations. Season, time of day, technique and bait are added once we have a good source for the bluefin driftfish.

how to recognize it

identification

Adults dark brown to dark purple, with dark blue eyes. Juveniles are translucent, with brown spots, and the first dorsal fin is dark. The body is laterally compressed. Being an open-sea fish, it is usually seen alongside jellyfish and patches of floating algae. In adults, the dark color and dark blue eye are the most reliable clues.

distribution

where found

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In Latin America, there are records from Chile, Peru, French Guiana and Suriname, in the open sea.

Habitat: Open sea, in deep waters, alongside jellyfish and floating algae.

what the law says

rules for the bluefin driftfish

Summary of the regulations we found, with the source for each. Rules change; before keeping or transporting fish, check with the state environmental agency.

We found no species-specific rule beyond the region's general rules.

catch and release
catch and release Releasing the fish alive, quickly and with a wet hand. During a closed season it isn't always allowed: what the regulation says applies.

The spines are not dangerous. If it is hooked at depth, the ascent causes barotrauma, so release it carefully.

calculator

how much it weighs without taking it out of the water

Length-weight relationship W = a·Lb (a = 0.01995, b = 3.01; FishBase (relação peso-comprimento bayesiana, estimativa)). It's an average: a fat or lean fish can vary by 10% to 20%.

estimated weight

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sources and references

Essential profile: size, length-weight, depth, countries and conservation come from FishBase and the cited regulations, and the texts were written from those sources. Season, time of day, sensitivities, technique and baits and lures are not included yet, because we did not find a good source for this species.

  1. scientific FishBase: Psenes pellucidus (ficha da espécie)Size, length-weight, depth, habitat, distribution, biology, and IUCN status. Page checked on Oct 13, 2026.
  2. scientific FishBase: nomes populares de Psenes pellucidusNames by country and language.