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Atlantic croakerPeak seasonBar · Texas
Josephine Reef
28.33°N · 96.52°W · Bar · San Antonio, Mesquite, and Espiritu Santo Bays
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 7 AM · Atlantic croaker
- Now
- 635 PM CDT
- Best window
- 5-11 PMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing0.2 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Josephine 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 · 5 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
96Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.4 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
71Wind: 13 kt ESEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
44Water temp: 93°F, hotLight: Late afternoonSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 1.9 ftSeason & habitat · Atlantic croaker
Species seasonality
90Season: PeakHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: no rule on file
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Texas state waters (shore to 9 nautical miles, bays included)
No rule for Atlantic croaker is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with TPWD before you keep a fish.
Species rules here
- Black drum Retention open (5 per day)
- Cobia Retention open (1 per day)
- Gag grouper Retention open (2 per day)
- Gray triggerfish Retention open (20 per day)
- Greater amberjack Retention open (1 per day)
- King mackerel Retention open (3 per day)
- Red drum Retention open (3 per day)
- Red snapper Retention open (4 per day)
- Sailfish Retention open
- Sheepshead Retention open (5 per day)
- Snook Retention open (1 per day)
- Southern flounder Retention open (5 per day)
- Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
- Spotted seatrout Retention open (3 per day)
- Striped bass Retention open (5 per day)
- Tarpon Retention open (1 per day)
Source: TPWD · synced today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Atlantic croaker is best here
Peak season for Atlantic croaker · 1 more week at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Josephine Reef
- Depth
- 6-7 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Reef · Inner · Semi-exposedReef · flat bottom
- Season
- Peak seasonAtlantic croaker
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 Josephine Reef
Josephine Reef is a bar in San Antonio, Mesquite, and Espiritu Santo Bays, Texas. Depth is 6-7 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads reef, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 15 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, gray triggerfish and red snapper. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, red drum, Atlantic tarpon and crevalle jack, and shoulder season for gray triggerfish, red snapper, greater amberjack and king mackerel. Atlantic croaker peak from June through September. Gray triggerfish peak from May through August. Red snapper peak from May through August.
Tackle & technique
- 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.
- Gray triggerfish
- Gray triggerfish hover a few feet over reefs, wrecks and ledges, usually in 60 to 200 feet, and often show up while snapper fishing. Use small, strong circle hooks with small pieces of squid or cut bait on a short bottom rig, because they nibble and strip big baits. Keep the bait just off the bottom and reel steadily at the first solid pull.
- Red snapper
- Red snapper school over rigs, wrecks, artificial reefs and natural ledges, mostly in 60 to 250 feet. Anchor or drift over the structure, chum, and drop cut or live cigar minnows, sardines or squid on circle hooks, using as little weight as the current allows. Federal rules require circle hooks with natural bait in the Gulf and a descending device or venting tool on board.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Shoalwater Bay65
Bay · 3.7 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 65
- Atlantic tarpon 65
- Atlantic croaker 62
13 kt ESEL 12:14 AM · 0.1 ftH 3:28 PM · 0.2 ft
- Espiritu Santo Bay62
Bay · 1.1 mi
Top: Atlantic tarponPeak season- Atlantic tarpon 62
- Crevalle jack 61
- Atlantic croaker 60
13 kt ESEL 12:14 AM · 0.1 ftH 3:28 PM · 0.2 ft
- Rahal Bayou62
Bay · 2.2 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 62
- Atlantic tarpon 62
- Crevalle jack 61
13 kt ESEL 12:14 AM · 0.1 ftH 3:28 PM · 0.2 ft
- Lighthouse Cove62
Bay · 5.2 mi
Top: Crevalle jackPeak season- Crevalle jack 62
- Atlantic tarpon 62
- Atlantic croaker 60
13 kt ESEL 10:35 PM · 0.1 ftH 5:10 AM · 0.3 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 TPWD before you keep a fish.