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From Bluefish to Anchovy, the Bosphorus Fish Calendar

In Istanbul, fish is a calendar before it is a menu item.

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From Bluefish to Anchovy, the Bosphorus Fish Calendar

In Istanbul, fish is a calendar before it is a menu item. In September the number of rods on the bridges grows, in October bonito piles up on the stalls, winter brings anchovy and whiting, and in spring a quiet settles on the sea. The Bosphorus sets this calendar: the narrow waterway between the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara has been a corridor for migrating fish for centuries. This piece covers the fish of the Bosphorus, why their names change with size, what to eat in which month and what is not caught when, and what you need to know in front of a fish stall or with a rod on a bridge. For fishing bans and size limits we rely on the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry's regulations in force from 1 September 2024 to 31 August 2028.

A Corridor Between Two Seas

The Bosphorus owes its wealth of fish to the movement of its water. According to the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality's guide to line fishing, the strait has two currents. The surface current flows from the Black Sea towards the Marmara at a depth of about 20 to 40 metres at around 3 kilometres an hour, rising to 5 kilometres an hour at the narrows and headlands. The deep current, driven by the difference in salinity, runs the other way, from the Marmara to the Black Sea. The strait is 700 metres wide at its narrowest and 3,600 metres at its widest. The guide notes that the surface current is strongest between September and December, the months when migrating shoals yield the most fish, and that southerly winds such as the lodos slow the current and bring catches down.

The migration runs both ways. In spring, through April, May and early June, fish move up into the Black Sea to spawn and feed. At the end of summer the young and the adults return: according to the municipal guide, the bluefish run begins in mid September, and bonito shoals appear in the Bosphorus at the same time. Historical sources show how rich this once was. The study by Aylin Ulman and colleagues on Turkey's lost fish relates that a 17th century fountain in Üsküdar bears an inscription saying the Bosphorus is full of fish, that people were said to catch fish by lowering baskets into the Golden Horn, and that the half century from 1859 to 1909 was remembered as the bluefish era. According to the same study, in the early 20th century bluefish were caught in Istanbul between August and October mostly from the bridges, on hand lines spun from horsehair, and daily sales in the city ranged from 50 to 380 tonnes.

Bonito and Torik Are the Same Fish

The most confusing thing about Bosphorus fishing is the names. Palamut and torik are not different fish; both are Atlantic bonito, Sarda sarda, and the name changes with the size of the fish. The study by Mustafa Zengin and Aylin Ulman on the history of bonito, based on a classification from 1956, lists the names also used by local fishermen:

  • Palamut vonozu, up to 15 centimetres
  • Çingene palamudu, 15 to 28 centimetres
  • Palamut, 28 to 40 centimetres
  • Zindandelen, 45 to 50 centimetres
  • Torik, 50 to 60 centimetres
  • Sivri, 60 to 65 centimetres
  • Altıparmak, 65 to 70 centimetres
  • Peçuta, over 70 centimetres

The migration is told through these names as well. Adult bonito move into the Black Sea in spring to spawn. The young grow fast; by mid August the 15 to 20 centimetre kestane and çingene bonito appear in small shoals and set off towards the Marmara. In September and October bonito of 30 to 40 centimetres gather in large shoals around the Bosphorus, and in October and November they pass into the Marmara, changing names as they grow.

The numbers show how much this picture has changed. According to Zengin and Ulman, the highest bonito sales in the records of the Istanbul fish market between 1928 and 1952 came in 1940, with 6 million fish, and in the 1950s there were days when 600,000 bonito and 240,000 torik were caught. From the early 1960s torik gradually declined and was last recorded in Turkey in 1991, at 41 tonnes. Ulman and colleagues note that the average weight of bonito was 3 kilograms fifty years ago, 1 to 1.5 kilograms forty years ago and 1 kilogram twenty years ago, but is now between 300 and 500 grams, and that today's fishermen no longer know the names of the larger size classes. Bonito are now caught only on their autumn return, not on their spring journey into the Black Sea.

Salting bonito is an old tradition too. Zengin and Ulman describe how salted autumn bonito was a known food in Byzantine times, regarded as the forerunner of today's lakerda, and how bonito brine had been an important trade good since antiquity.

The legal framework is clear. Under the commercial fishing regulation, bonito and torik fishing is banned in all territorial waters by every method between 1 April and 31 August, except that bonito may be caught with çapari feather rigs from 15 to 31 August. The minimum size for bonito is 25 centimetres. For recreational anglers, bonito is closed from 1 April to 14 August, with the same 25 centimetre limit.

Bluefish, from Çinekop to Kofana

Bluefish is a different species from bonito: Pomatomus saltatrix. It too has names that change with size, and the classification Ulman and colleagues quote from sources of the 1950s is as follows:

  • Defne yaprağı, 8 to 10 centimetres
  • Çinekop, 10 to 20 centimetres
  • Sarıkanat, 20 to 25 centimetres
  • Lüfer, 25 to 35 centimetres
  • Kofana, over 35 centimetres, a fish of more than a kilogram

Kofana was once an ordinary catch. According to the same study, more than 2 million bluefish and kofana were landed from the Bosphorus on 19 to 21 November 1984, the last large kofana catch from the strait. From the early 1990s mature bluefish declined noticeably and were replaced on the stalls by çinekop and sarıkanat. The study notes that bluefish is still the most loved fish in Istanbul's fish restaurants, but that in season what you mostly find is çinekop, sometimes sarıkanat. Bluefish is now listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List.

The story of its size limit is instructive. According to Ulman and colleagues, a minimum landing size for bluefish was set at 15 centimetres in 1986 and then changed many times, between 17, 20, 18, 14 and 20 centimetres again, before falling to 18 centimetres in 2016. The regulation for 2024 to 2028 keeps it at 18 centimetres. Yet bluefish in Turkish waters are known to reach maturity at 26.5 to 28 centimetres, so the legal limit sits about 10 centimetres below the size at which the fish can first spawn. A 2019 study by Ferhat Kalaycı and colleagues, based on samples from the Marmara and the Black Sea, found that bluefish spawn between May and August and that 65.5 per cent of the fish examined were below even the 18 centimetre legal limit.

The Bosphorus bluefish gained an official identity in 2024. Registered on 10 January 2024 on behalf of the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce, the Boğaziçi Lüferi designation of origin covers bluefish that live and are caught in the waters between the Rumeli and Anadolu lighthouses in the north and the Ahırkapı lighthouse and the Kadıköy İnciburnu breakwater light in the south. According to the registration document, this bluefish lives at depths of 10 to 200 metres, is caught mainly between October and January, and must be at least 18 centimetres long and weigh at least 150 grams. It feeds on fish such as horse mackerel, garfish and picarel, spawns in late spring and early summer, and its fat content rises between October and May. The document also lists the traditional methods: zokalı sarkıtma, a baited drop line fished from a rowing boat at night; trolling a spoon from a moving boat; seğirtme, a jigging method used by day in November and December when the fish move in and out of the Black Sea; and casting and retrieving woollen flies or thimble lures. The favourite bait is picarel with its scales removed.

Anchovy, the Winter Fish of the Black Sea

Anchovy, Engraulis encrasicolus, is a small schooling fish that grows to 18 centimetres and forms the backbone of fishing in Turkey. According to a 2024 report by Anadolu Agency, anchovy makes up 60 per cent of Turkey's fisheries production, and the total allowable catch for the new period was set at 400,000 tonnes. Ulman and colleagues recall that Turkish catches in the Black Sea approached 500,000 tonnes in 1988, largely thanks to anchovy, but that catch per unit of effort has fallen by more than 95 per cent since its peak in 1987.

Anchovy is above all a Black Sea fish. Turkish Wikipedia notes that in the eastern Black Sea fishermen set out after anchovy with purse seines in the second week of October, and that the fish come close to the shore to feed between January and March. According to the traditional calendar in the municipal guide, anchovy fattens in December and reaches its richest in January.

The regulation keeps anchovy under strict rules. The minimum size is 9 centimetres. Anchovy may be caught only up to the quota announced by the Ministry each season, and fishing stops when the quota is filled. In the Marmara and the Black Sea, anchovy may be caught with purse seines only between 15.00 and 09.00. Sending anchovy, horse mackerel and sardines caught in the Marmara in bulk to fishmeal and fish oil plants is also banned.

Horse Mackerel, Chub Mackerel and Atlantic Mackerel

Horse mackerel, istavrit, is the Bosphorus's most loyal fish. The municipal guide says it can be caught all year at Akıntıburnu in Arnavutköy, and that on the Galata Bridge grey mullet and horse mackerel are plentiful in every month except May to August. The minimum size for horse mackerel is 13 centimetres. History has not always been kind to it: Ulman and colleagues relate that in times of great abundance, less valued fish such as horse mackerel found no buyers and were dumped near the fish market or buried in rubbish tips.

Chub mackerel, kolyoz, and Atlantic mackerel, uskumru, are the lost fish of the Bosphorus. According to Ulman and colleagues, both were abundant in the 1950s, migrating from the Aegean through the Marmara to the Bosphorus, and around 1970 they stopped migrating through the strait. Some fishermen blame the purse seine fishery that began in 1965 and its powerful lamps. Between 1940 and 1952 about 2,000 tonnes of Atlantic mackerel a year were sold at the Istanbul fish market, while the Marmara catch fell from 2,064 tonnes in 1967 to just 300 kilograms in 2016. Atlantic mackerel reappeared in the Bosphorus in 2013 but remains rare. Chub mackerel is still found in the Marmara, if only in small numbers. Under the regulation, the minimum size is 18 centimetres for chub mackerel and 20 for Atlantic mackerel. This is also why fish sandwiches today are mostly made with imported mackerel.

Whiting in Winter, a Spring Ban on Turbot

Whiting, Merlangius merlangus, belongs to the cod family. It is trawled in the Black Sea and, according to the municipal guide, can also be caught on a line from the Atatürk Bridge at Unkapanı. Turkish Wikipedia notes that it usually spawns between February and May. Ulman and colleagues point out that sprat, whiting and red mullet trawlers in the Black Sea also catch juvenile turbot because of their small mesh codends, so the way whiting is fished affects the future of turbot too. The minimum size for whiting is 13 centimetres.

Turbot, Scophthalmus maximus, is one of the prized bottom fish of the Black Sea and one of those most in need of protection. Ulman and colleagues relate that in the early 1900s a single set of nets in the Black Sea could bring in 500 to 1,000 turbot of 3 to 10 kilograms each, while the average length of turbot caught in trawl surveys fell from 41.9 centimetres in 1990 to 20.6 centimetres in 2014. The same study stresses that about two thirds of the catch was taken during the spawning season between April and June, when turbot move inshore, which sped up the collapse of the stock.

That is why today's rules are firm. Under the regulation, turbot fishing by every method is banned between 15 April and 15 June, turbot nets may not have a mesh smaller than 400 millimetres, and the catch is limited to the quota announced each season. The minimum size is 45 centimetres, and a recreational angler may take home no more than one turbot. The old calendar in the municipal guide stretches the turbot season from February to the end of May; today, eat turbot in winter and early spring, and do not expect to see it on the stalls during the closed season.

Fish of the Right Size, in Season

A minimum size is the smallest size at which a fish may be caught so that it can reproduce. The recreational fishing regulation defines it in exactly these terms: the smallest legal catch size at which the fish is accepted to have reached maturity. The commercial regulation bans not only catching fish below this size but also keeping them on board, landing, transporting and selling them. In other words, the size limit concerns not just fishermen but the stall, and you.

Following the seasons brings two gains. The first is flavour: fish returning from feeding in the Black Sea in autumn are rich in fat, and the traditional calendar in the municipal guide says mackerel, bluefish and bonito begin to lose their fat in February. The second is the stock: fishing bans mostly coincide with spawning seasons, and fish that cannot legally be caught at that time can only reach the stall from somewhere else.

  • The legal limit for bluefish may be 18 centimetres, but remember that the fish matures at 26.5 to 28 centimetres. If you have a choice, prefer true lüfer to small çinekop.
  • If you see bluefish the size of a bay leaf or a large finger on a stall, it may be below the legal limit; you have every right to ask the seller about its size.
  • Do not expect fresh bonito or torik between April and the end of August; this is the commercial closed season.
  • Do not order turbot between 15 April and 15 June; this is its spawning season and fishing is banned.
  • Anchovy's season is winter and horse mackerel's is the whole year; fish that is plentiful in season is both fresher and cheaper.

The Bosphorus Month by Month

The summary below reads the traditional monthly calendar in the municipal line fishing guide of 2017 alongside the fishing bans in force today. Remember that some fish named in the traditional calendar, such as Atlantic mackerel and torik, are rare in the Bosphorus today.

  • September: the summer ban on purse seining ends on 1 September. Bonito grow larger; bluefish, chub mackerel, picarel and gurnard are plentiful.
  • October: migrating fish start returning to the Marmara after feeding in the Black Sea over the summer, and every kind of fish becomes abundant. The main season for Bosphorus bluefish opens in October.
  • November: in the traditional calendar, the month of torik and flounder; the jigging season for bluefish begins.
  • December: anchovy, striped red mullet and bluefish are rich in fat and suit any dish.
  • January: grey mullet and anchovy are at their fattest, kofana and shi drum are plentiful, and striped red mullet and gurnard are caught in numbers.
  • February: traditionally the month the turbot season begins; bluefish and bonito start to lose their fat.
  • March: considered the best time for grey mullet, sea bass and turbot.
  • April: the ban on bonito and torik starts on 1 April and the bans on purse seining and turbot on 15 April; mussel harvesting is also closed from 15 April to 30 June.
  • May: red mullet, striped red mullet, sea bass, sole and gurnard are plentiful.
  • June: fish move temporarily into the Black Sea and bottom fish have spawned; it is the month when the fewest fish are caught.
  • July: the sardine season opens and lasts until the end of October.
  • August: after 15 August the season for small çingene bonito begins, and commercial boats may catch bonito with çapari rigs from that date.

Fish Markets and Neighbourhoods

Most of the fish that reaches Istanbul passes first through the wholesale market. According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry's list of wholesale seafood markets, the city's wholesale fish market is the Gürpınar Seafood Market in Beylikdüzü, run by the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality. The fishmongers and markets in the neighbourhoods, meanwhile, are part of city life. In Karaköy, fish restaurants cluster around the local fish market. Kumkapı is a quarter known for its fishermen and fish restaurants. Beşiktaş market is known for its fish restaurants, and in Sarıyer the fishmongers around the pier carry the air of the northern end of the Bosphorus.

  • Go early in the morning; the stall is both fuller and fresher.
  • Ask the name of the fish, its size and where it came from. Knowing the difference between lüfer and çinekop, or palamut and çingene palamudu, also makes bargaining easier.
  • Keep in mind that fish that looks plentiful out of season may come from a farm or from imports; that is not bad, but you have a right to know.
  • If a fish on the stall looks small to you, remember the size limits above; not buying small fish encourages the stall not to sell them.

What Recreational Anglers Need to Know

You do not need a licence to fish with a rod in the Bosphorus, but there are rules. The main points of recreational fishing regulation No. 6/2 are these:

  • A Recreational Fisher Certificate valid for five years can be obtained from provincial and district directorates, but getting one or carrying it while fishing is not compulsory.
  • Selling anything caught through recreational fishing is banned.
  • At sea, size limits are similar to commercial ones: bluefish 18, bonito 25, Atlantic mackerel 20, chub mackerel 18, horse mackerel 13, whiting 13 and turbot 45 centimetres. A 5 per cent allowance is made for undersized fish.
  • For species limited by weight, the total catch one person may take away cannot exceed 5 kilograms; a single fish over 5 kilograms is still legal. For species limited by number, you may keep no more than 3 fish in total, and for turbot the limit is one.
  • One person may use at most 4 rigs with no more than 6 hooks each, plus a single çapari rig with up to 15 hooks.
  • Using any kind of light to attract fish is banned; lighting of no more than 50 watts on a boat or on shore for safety is not covered. The traditional night fishing with light described in the designation of origin document is subject to this limit for recreational anglers.
  • The tırıvırı or parachute net, made of monofilament and lingering in the water for years, may not be used or carried.
  • Between 1 April and 15 November, fishing is banned in buoyed swimming areas up to 200 metres from the shore.
  • Recreational fishing for bonito is closed from 1 April to 14 August and for turbot from 15 April to 15 June.
  • Spearfishing is not allowed between sunset and sunrise.

On the commercial side, two rules concern the Bosphorus directly: all forms of trawling are banned in the Istanbul and Çanakkale straits, and purse seining is banned in the Bosphorus between the line joining Ahırkapı and Kadıköy and the line joining Yeniköy and Çubuklu.

Fishing from Bridges and the Shore

The municipal guide describes the city's fishing spots one by one, with what can be caught at each. Anglers can be seen on the Galata Bridge every day and at every hour; grey mullet and horse mackerel are plentiful except from May to August. South of the Karaköy ferry pier you can catch bluefish, and at Kabataş pier horse mackerel, sardines, bluefish and grey mullet. At Sarayburnu there are horse mackerel, bluefish, Atlantic mackerel and bonito; the shore is rocky, so a casting rod is needed. On the Atatürk Bridge at Unkapanı you can catch horse mackerel, grey mullet, whiting and sardines. Akıntıburnu offers horse mackerel all year, bluefish from September to November and garfish in summer. On the Nakkaştepe shore in Üsküdar there are sand smelt and horse mackerel in every season, and anchovy before the bluefish run. The guide's note on the Beylerbeyi pier is worth heeding: it says the spot is full of local fishermen and is not a place for beginners.

  • On bridges and piers, think of the pedestrians and ferry passengers passing behind you; look behind you before you cast.
  • The Bosphorus current is fast, especially at the headlands. Do not lean out from the shore, and wear non slip shoes on rocky spots.
  • Measure your catch with a small ruler you carry with you, and release anything under the limit back into the water alive and unharmed.
  • Do not leave line and hooks on the shore; they harm gulls and other creatures.

Sources

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