Waterlands

UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN

Black drumRetention open

Cape · Florida

Bunkers Point

30.14°N · 85.66°W · Cape · St. Andrews Bay Waterways

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 9 AM · Black drum

72/100Great
Now
569 PM CDT
Best window
9 PM-12 AMFlood tide
Tide now
Flooding0.6 ft ▲

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

Notify me when Bunkers Point scores 75+

Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.

Sign in to set an alert

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 9 PM · now

Time9PNOW
Score56Good
Tide0.6 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentFlood0.3 kn · toward E
Wind2 kn WSWgusts 5 · steady
Sea stateLight chop0.5 ft · 5 s
Air temp76°Warm
WeatherPartly cloudy66% chance of rain
Water86°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Black drum

Retention open
Daily limit
5 per day
Possession
Not published
Size
Slot 14 to 24 in, total length. One fish over 24 inches allowed, counted in the bag limit.
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
Special rules apply in Biscayne National Park. Hook and line, cast net, seine, spear or gig. No multiple hooks with natural bait. No snatching. Open year-round.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Black Drum, read Sep 13

Other species here

  • Atlantic croaker Retention open
  • 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 Black drum is best here

Shoulder season for Black drum · 18 more weeks at shoulder

Black drum season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Black drum · 18 more weeks at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Black drum in Florida

Spot profile

Bunkers Point

Depth
2-45 ftSlope
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · slope
Season
Shoulder seasonBlack 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 Bunkers Point

Bunkers Point is a cape in St. Andrews Bay Waterways, Florida. Depth is 2-45 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.

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

Tackle & technique

Black drum
Black drum root along the bottom around oyster reefs, bridge and pier pilings, channel edges and shallow mud flats. TPWD notes they rarely take artificials, so fish peeled shrimp, crab, clams or sand fleas on a bottom rig and let the fish load the rod before setting the hook. Big spawning schools gather near passes and bay mouths in late winter and spring, and in the Chesapeake and Delaware Bay the large fish show up on the shoals from April into June.
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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Massalina Bayou

    Bay · 0.7 mi

    75
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 75
    • Atlantic croaker 73
    • Gray snapper 68

    2 kt WSWH 7:21 AM · 1.7 ftL 5:22 PM · 0.5 ft

  • Bunkers Cove

    Bay · 0.4 mi

    73
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 73
    • Gray snapper 73
    • Red drum 73

    2 kt WSWH 7:21 AM · 1.7 ftL 5:22 PM · 0.5 ft

  • Redfish Point

    Cape · 0.7 mi

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

    2 kt WSWH 7:21 AM · 1.7 ftL 5:22 PM · 0.5 ft

  • Town Point

    Cape · 0.8 mi

    66
    Top: Gray snapperPeak season
    • Gray snapper 66
    • Red drum 66
    • Atlantic croaker 65

    2 kt WSWH 7:21 AM · 1.7 ftL 5:22 PM · 0.5 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.