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Gag grouperRetention openBay · Florida
Buttonwood Bay
25.91°N · 81.59°W · Bay · Coastal waters from Chokoloskee to Bonita Beach FL out 20 NM
Species here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker73
- Florida pompano68
- Common snook67
- Red drum64
- Atlantic tarpon58
- Permit58
- Gray snapper56
- Southern flounder56
- Spanish mackerel55
- Crevalle jack54
- Black drum51
- King mackerel50
- Yellowfin tuna49
- Gag grouper48
- Spotted seatrout47
- Cobia45
- Gray triggerfish45
- Mahi-mahi45
- Red snapper45
- Sailfish45
- Red grouper44
- Wahoo41
- Greater amberjack40
- Sheepshead35
Best score today · 9 AM · Gag grouper
- Now
- 4812 PM EDT
- Best window
- 8 PM-12 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- High3.8 ft
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Buttonwood Bay scores 75+
Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.
14-day forecast
Best days to fish
24-hour conditions · rolling from now
Conditions · 12 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
41Tide: High slackCurrent: 0.4 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
91Wind: 2 kt SEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
68Water temp: 85°F, hotLight: OvercastSolunar: Near a majorSeas: 0.7 ftSeason & habitat · Gag grouper
Species seasonality
53Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Gag grouper
Retention open- Daily limit
- 2 per day (4 Gulf grouper combined)
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 24 in, total length
- Season
- Sep 1 to Sep 30, 2026
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Changes
- Closed from Oct 1
- Other
- Private-vessel anglers need the State Reef Fish Angler designation. Charter captain and crew bag limit is zero. No more than 4 grouper combined per person per day. Reef fish gear rules apply. Land with head and fins intact. FWC set the 2026 Gulf state waters gag season to September 1 through 30 by executive order, matching the federal season. Excludes Monroe County.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Groupers, read Sep 13
Other species here
- Atlantic croaker Retention open
- 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)
- 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 Catch & release (No retention)
- 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)
Source: FWC · synced today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Gag grouper is best here
Shoulder season for Gag grouper · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Buttonwood Bay
- Depth
- Up to 1 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · ProtectedBay · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonGag grouper
NOAA NCEI DEM, sampled Sep 13 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 Buttonwood Bay
Buttonwood Bay is a bay in Coastal waters from Chokoloskee to Bonita Beach FL out 20 NM, Florida. Depth is up to 1 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 24 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, Florida pompano and common snook. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, common snook, red drum and gray snapper, and shoulder season for Florida pompano, Atlantic tarpon, permit and southern flounder. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Florida pompano peak from March through May and from October through November. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October.
Tackle & technique
- Gag grouper
- Gag hold on ledges, rock piles and wrecks, from 15 to 40 feet in the fall on Florida's Gulf coast out to 250 feet the rest of the year. Troll deep-diving plugs to find productive rocks, then anchor and drop or freeline live pinfish or pigfish on a strong circle hook. Keep the drag tight and turn the fish in the first few seconds or it will reach the rocks.
- 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.
- Florida pompano
- Pompano feed on sand fleas and coquina clams in the trough between the beach and the first sandbar, and around the sandy edges of passes, inlets and bridges. Surf anglers fish a two-hook pompano rig with sand fleas, clams or shrimp, while boat and bridge anglers bounce small jigs along the bottom. The runs follow water temperature, heading north in spring and south in fall as the water cools.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Coon Gravy Gate77
Channel · 0.9 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 77
- Florida pompano 68
- Common snook 67
2 kt SEL 6:58 PM · 0.5 ftH 1:09 AM · 3.6 ft
- Shell Key Bay74
Bay · 1.5 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 74
- Florida pompano 68
- Common snook 67
2 kt SEL 6:58 PM · 0.5 ftH 1:09 AM · 3.6 ft
- Blackwater Bay74
Bay · 1.6 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 74
- Florida pompano 68
- Common snook 67
2 kt SEL 6:58 PM · 0.5 ftH 1:09 AM · 3.6 ft
- Gator Bay73
Bay · 0.9 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 73
- Florida pompano 68
- Common snook 67
2 kt SEL 7:07 PM · 0.4 ftH 1:18 AM · 3.5 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.