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Spotted seatroutRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
Best score today · 5 PM · Spotted seatrout
- Now
- 592 AM CDT
- Best window
- 4-8 PMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Flooding0.6 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Bunker Cove 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
Thursday, Oct 1 · 7 AM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
100Tide: EbbingWind & pressure
ECMWF
64Wind: 6 kt NNEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
37Water temp: 86°F, hotLight: DawnSolunar: Between periodsSeason & habitat · Spotted seatrout
Species seasonality
84Season: PeakHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Spotted seatrout
Retention open- Daily limit
- 3 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Slot 15 to 19 in, total length. One fish over 19 inches per vessel, or per person when fishing from shore, counted in the bag limit.
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Changes
- Closed from Feb 1
- 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 multiple hooks with natural bait. No snatching. Open March 1 through January 31. Closed in February. Regional rules apply in inland, state and adjacent federal waters. New regional rules took effect April 1, 2026.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Spotted Seatrout, 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 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
- Summer flounder Retention open (5 per day)
- Tarpon Catch & release (No retention)
- Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)
Source: FWC · synced yesterday
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Spotted seatrout is best here
Shoulder season for Spotted seatrout · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Bunker Cove
- Depth
- 2-4 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · ProtectedBay · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonSpotted seatrout
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 Bunker Cove
Bunker Cove is a bay in Eastern Choctawhatchee Bay, Florida. Depth is 2-4 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 19 species here; the best right now are red drum, Atlantic croaker and gray snapper. It is peak season now for red drum, Atlantic croaker and gray snapper, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, southern flounder, black drum and permit. Red drum peak from September through November. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Gray snapper peak from June through September.
Tackle & technique
- Spotted seatrout
- Trout hold over grass beds and sandy potholes in 2 to 8 feet of water most of the year and slide into channels, deep creek bends and canals during cold snaps. A live shrimp under a slip or popping cork, a paddle tail on a light jighead, or a topwater walked at first light covers most situations. Keep the drag light because their mouths tear easily.
- 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.
- 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
- Mallet Bayou77
Bay · 5.0 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 77
- Atlantic croaker 71
- Gray snapper 66
3 kt EH 7:53 AM · 0.9 ftL 9:26 PM · 0.4 ft
- Duck Lake73
Bay · 1.7 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 73
- Atlantic croaker 71
- Gray snapper 71
3 kt EH 7:53 AM · 0.9 ftL 9:26 PM · 0.4 ft
- Jolly Bay73
Bay · 3.0 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 73
- Atlantic croaker 71
- Gray snapper 71
3 kt EH 7:53 AM · 0.9 ftL 9:26 PM · 0.4 ft
- Wheeler Point69
Cape · 4.4 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 69
- Atlantic croaker 66
- Gray snapper 66
3 kt EH 7:53 AM · 0.9 ftL 9:26 PM · 0.4 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.