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Red drumRetention openBar · Florida
Dog Island Reef
29.82°N · 84.51°W · Bar · Coastal Waters From Ochlockonee River to Apalachicola FL out to 20 Nm
Species here · tap to switch
- Best of all69
- Red drum69
- Gray snapper64
- Atlantic croaker62
- Atlantic tarpon57
- Gag grouper56
- Florida pompano54
- Gray triggerfish54
- Red grouper54
- Red snapper54
- Spanish mackerel54
- Black drum52
- Crevalle jack52
- King mackerel52
- Permit52
- Greater amberjack48
- Cobia46
- Southern flounder46
- Spotted seatrout46
- Yellowfin tuna46
- Mahi-mahi41
- Sailfish40
- Wahoo39
- Sheepshead35
Best score today · 9 AM · Gray snapper
- Now
- 696 PM EDT
- Best window
- 6 PM-12 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Flooding0.9 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Dog Island Reef 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 · 6 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
45Tide: FloodingCurrent: WeakWind & pressure
ECMWF
92Wind: 2 kt EPressure: FallingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
80Water temp: 87°F, warmLight: DuskSolunar: Near a majorSeas: 1.0 ftSeason & habitat · Red drum
Species seasonality
90Season: PeakHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Red drum
Retention open- Daily limit
- 1 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Slot 18 to 27 in, total length
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Must stay whole until landed ashore. For-hire captain and crew may not keep a bag limit. Hook and line or cast net only. No spearing, gigging, bowfishing, snatch hooking, or multiple hooks with natural bait. Open year-round.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Red Drum (Redfish), 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)
- 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 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)
Source: FWC · synced today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Red drum is best here
Peak season for Red drum · 10 more weeks at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Dog Island Reef
- Depth
- 9-15 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Reef · Outer · ExposedReef · flat bottom
- Season
- Peak seasonRed drum
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 Dog Island Reef
Dog Island Reef is a bar in Coastal Waters From Ochlockonee River to Apalachicola FL out to 20 Nm, Florida. Depth is 9-15 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads reef, outer water and exposed.
Waterlands scores 23 species here; the best right now are red drum, gray snapper and Atlantic croaker. It is peak season now for red drum, gray snapper and Atlantic croaker, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, gag grouper, Florida pompano and gray triggerfish. Red drum peak from September through November. Gray snapper peak from June through September. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September.
Tackle & technique
- 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.
- 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.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Peninsula Point79
Cape · 7.5 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 79
- Atlantic croaker 70
- Gray snapper 65
2 kt EH 9:07 PM · 1.8 ftL 12:43 AM · 1.6 ft
- Alligator Harbor79
Bay · 9.0 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 79
- Atlantic croaker 71
- Gray snapper 71
2 kt EH 9:07 PM · 1.8 ftL 12:43 AM · 1.6 ft
- Southwest Cape75
Cape · 9.2 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 75
- Atlantic croaker 70
- Gray snapper 65
2 kt EH 9:07 PM · 1.8 ftL 12:43 AM · 1.6 ft
- Turkey Point70
Cape · 6.0 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 70
- Atlantic croaker 63
- Gray snapper 58
2 kt EH 7:01 AM · 2.7 ftL 4:11 PM · 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.