Waterlands

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Red grouperRetention open

Bay · Florida

Browns Bay

29.00°N · 80.89°W · Bay · Flagler Beach to Volusia-Brevard County Line 0-20 nm

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Best score today · 7 AM · Red grouper

79/100Great
Now
446 AM EDT
Best window
6 AM-12 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Flooding2.1 ft ▲

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

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14-day forecast

Best days to fish

Best: Thu · 80

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 6 AM · now

Time6ANOW
Score44Fair
Tide2.1 ft ▲Flooding
Current0.0 knmodeled · toward E
Wind3 kn NWgusts 5 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.5 ft · 7 s
Air temp73°Warm
WeatherMostly cloudy79% cloud
Water82°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Atlantic state waters (Nassau through Miami-Dade counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Red grouper

Retention open
Daily limit
3 per day (3 Atlantic grouper and tilefish combined)
Possession
Not published
Size
Minimum 20 in, total length
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Changes
Closed from Jan 1
Other
Private-vessel anglers need the State Reef Fish Angler designation. Special rules apply in Biscayne National Park. No more than 3 grouper and tilefish combined per person per day. Reef fish gear rules apply. Land with head and fins intact. Open May 1 through December 31. Closed January 1 through April 30.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Groupers, read Sep 13

Other species here

  • Atlantic croaker Retention open (50 per day)
  • Black drum Retention open (5 per day)
  • Bluefish Retention open (3 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 Closed (No retention)
  • Gray snapper Retention open (5 per day (10 snapper combined))
  • Gray triggerfish Retention open (10 per day)
  • Greater amberjack Retention open (1 per day)
  • King mackerel Retention open (2 per day)
  • Mahi-mahi Retention open (5 per day)
  • Permit Retention open (2 per day)
  • Red drum Catch & release (No retention)
  • Red snapper Check regulations
  • 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 (50 per day)
  • Spotted seatrout Retention open (2 per day)
  • Summer flounder Retention open (5 per day)
  • Tarpon Catch & release (No retention)
  • Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)
Always check with FWC ↗Fishing license ↗

Source: FWC · synced yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Red grouper is best here

Shoulder season for Red grouper · 5 more weeks at shoulder

Red grouper season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Red grouper · 5 more weeks at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Red grouper in Florida →

Spot profile

Browns Bay

Depth
Up to 3 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bay · Inner · ProtectedBay · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonRed 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 Browns Bay

Browns Bay is a bay in Flagler Beach to Volusia-Brevard County Line 0-20 nm, Florida. Depth is up to 3 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and protected.

Waterlands scores 28 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, spot and Atlantic tarpon. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, spot, Atlantic tarpon and crevalle jack, and shoulder season for Florida pompano, mahi-mahi, weakfish and black drum. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Spot peak from September through October. Atlantic tarpon peak from July through September.

Tackle & technique

Red grouper
Red grouper live on low limestone ledges and potholed live bottom across the West Florida Shelf, mostly in 60 to 250 feet. Drift to find hard bottom, then anchor and fish live pinfish, grunts or squid on the bottom with stout conventional tackle. Reel hard right after the bite, because they dive into holes, and use a descending device on fish released from deep water.
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.
Spot
Spot school over mud and sand in bays, tidal creeks and channels and around piers and bridges, generally in less than 25 feet of water. Fish a two-hook bottom rig with small hooks and bits of bloodworm or shrimp, and move until you find a school. In fall the biggest fish run out of the sounds past piers and inlets, and the bite can go all day.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

View all on map →
  • Little Snapper Cut

    Channel · 0.3 mi

    77
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 77
    • Spot 73
    • Atlantic tarpon 69

    3 kt NWH 6:54 AM · 2.3 ftL 1:09 PM · 0.3 ft

  • Big Snapper Cut

    Channel · 0.4 mi

    77
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 77
    • Spot 73
    • Atlantic tarpon 69

    3 kt NWH 6:54 AM · 2.3 ftL 1:09 PM · 0.3 ft

  • Indian River North

    Channel · 2.1 mi

    77
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 77
    • Common snook 75
    • Atlantic tarpon 74

    3 kt NWH 8:09 AM · 0.9 ftL 2:38 PM · 0.1 ft

  • Snake Creek

    Bay · 0.3 mi

    73
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 73
    • Spot 71
    • Red drum 66

    3 kt NWH 6:54 AM · 2.3 ftL 1:09 PM · 0.3 ft

Open in the tide map

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.