Waterlands

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Atlantic croakerPeak season

Gut · Alabama

Old River

30.29°N · 87.50°W · Gut · Perdido Bay Area

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Best score today · 6 AM · Atlantic croaker

77/100Great
Now
713 PM CDT
Best window
7 PM-12 AMFlood tide
Tide now
Ebbing0.1 ft ▼

Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine

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24-hour conditions

Monday, Sep 28 · 7 PM

Time7P
Score71Great
Tide0.4 ft ▲Flooding
Wind4 kn SEgusts 18 · steady
Air temp77°Warm
WeatherOvercast100% cloud
Water86°FPersisted

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Atlantic croaker

Retention open
Daily limit
Not published
Possession
Not published
Size
Not published
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
100 pounds per person per day. No minimum size. Open year-round.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Spot and Atlantic croaker, read Sep 13

Other species here

  • Black drum Retention open (5 per day)
  • Bluefish Retention open (10 per day)
  • Bonefish Catch & release (No retention)
  • Cobia Retention open (1 per day)
  • Crevalle jack Retention open
  • Florida pompano Retention open (6 per day)
  • Gag grouper Retention open (2 per day (4 Gulf grouper combined))
  • Gray snapper Retention open (5 per day (10 snapper combined))
  • Gray triggerfish Retention open (1 per day)
  • Greater amberjack Retention open (1 per day)
  • King mackerel Retention open (3 per day)
  • Mahi-mahi Retention open (10 per day)
  • Permit Retention open (2 per day)
  • Red drum Retention open (1 per day)
  • Red grouper Retention open (2 per day (4 Gulf grouper combined))
  • Red snapper Retention open (2 per day (10 snapper combined))
  • Sailfish Retention open (1 per day (1 billfish combined))
  • Sheepshead Retention open (8 per day)
  • Snook Retention open (1 per day)
  • Southern flounder Retention open (5 per day)
  • Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
  • Spot Retention open
  • Spotted seatrout Retention open (3 per day)
  • Summer flounder Retention open (5 per day)
  • Tarpon Catch & release (No retention)
  • Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Atlantic croaker is best here

Peak season for Atlantic croaker · 1 more week at peak

Atlantic croaker season by week of the year. Peak season for Atlantic croaker · 1 more week at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Atlantic croaker in Alabama

Spot profile

Old River

Depth
1-10 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Channel · Inner · ProtectedChannel · flat bottom
Season
Peak seasonAtlantic croaker

NOAA NCEI DEM, sampled Sep 14 on a 3.4 m grid. Depths are feet below NAVD 88, not chart datum (MLLW), so they can differ from a chart by a few feet. Not for navigation.

About this spot

Fishing Old River

Old River is a gut in Perdido Bay Area, Alabama. Depth is 1-10 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads channel, inner water and protected.

Waterlands scores 19 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, red drum and gray snapper. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, red drum and gray snapper, and shoulder season for black drum, Atlantic tarpon, crevalle jack and gag grouper. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Red drum peak from September through November. Gray snapper peak from June through September.

Tackle & technique

Atlantic croaker
Croaker feed on mud and sand bottom along channel edges, oyster bars, piers and deeper holes in bays and sounds, mostly in 5 to 30 feet of water. A two-hook bottom rig with small hooks and shrimp, bloodworm or squid catches them from piers, the surf and small boats. Fish the hours around high tide and into the evening.
Red drum
Redfish feed on shallow grass flats, oyster bars and marsh edges, often in 1 to 4 feet of water, and drop into channels, deep holes and tidal creeks when the water turns very hot or cold. Work a live shrimp under a popping cork or a soft plastic along the grass line on a rising tide, then fish creek mouths and drains as the tide falls. Bull reds over 30 inches school in the surf, passes and jetties in late summer and fall, where cut mullet or a live crab on the bottom is the standard approach.
Gray snapper
Mangrove snapper hold tight to mangrove roots, bridge pilings, jetties and reef ledges, from a few feet deep inshore to 150 feet offshore. Chum to pull them out of cover, then freeline or lightly weight a live shrimp or pilchard on fluorocarbon leader, since they shy away from heavy line in clear water. The bite improves at dusk and after dark.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Goat Bayou

    Bay · 0.6 mi

    71
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 71
    • Atlantic croaker 67
    • Gray snapper 63

    3 kt ENEL 6:00 PM · 0.0 ftH 7:39 AM · 0.8 ft

  • Bellville Bay

    Bay · 0.9 mi

    69
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 69
    • Gray snapper 68
    • Atlantic croaker 67

    3 kt ENEL 6:00 PM · 0.0 ftH 7:39 AM · 0.8 ft

  • Old River

    Bay · 1.2 mi

    69
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 69
    • Gray snapper 68
    • Atlantic croaker 67

    3 kt ENEL 6:00 PM · 0.0 ftH 7:39 AM · 0.8 ft

  • Goat Point

    Cape · 0.8 mi

    64
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 64
    • Gray snapper 63
    • Atlantic croaker 62

    3 kt ENEL 6:00 PM · 0.0 ftH 7:39 AM · 0.8 ft

Scores and forecasts are for planning only and can be wrong. Conditions on the water change fast; check the marine forecast before you go. Regulations change during the season, so confirm limits and closures with FWC before you keep a fish.