Redfish (red drum)

Identification and growth

TPWD points to one large black spot on the upper base of the tail as the mark to look for: several spots are common, a fish with none is rare. Color runs from nearly silver to deep copper, with reddish bronze the most common. Growth is quick; in Texas a red drum reaches about 11 inches in its first year and 22 to 24 inches by its third. The mouth sits low, suited to bottom feeding, and a fish rooting head-down in very shallow grass shows its tail above the surface, which anglers call tailing (TPWD). Males make the drumming sound with a muscle that vibrates the swim bladder (TPWD, SCDNR).

Where they live through the year

Young red drum spend their first years in bays, marsh creeks and the surf near passes, and Texas tag returns show most move less than 3 miles from where they were tagged (TPWD). As they mature they move out: on the Gulf side TPWD says adults stay in the Gulf apart from occasional visits to the bays, while on the Atlantic the ASMFC says fish older than about four live in deeper water and move offshore or south in winter. Spawning runs from mid-August to mid-October near Gulf passes and beaches (TPWD, Louisiana Sea Grant) and in late summer and fall near inlets in South Carolina (SCDNR). In winter, juveniles collect in deeper creeks, rivers and channels. The fall gathering of big adults along Gulf beaches and passes, strongest in stormy weather, is what Texas anglers call the bull redfish run.

Stock status and federal waters

The ASMFC's 2024 benchmark assessment found the northern Atlantic stock (New Jersey through North Carolina) neither overfished nor subject to overfishing, but the southern stock (South Carolina through Florida's east coast) overfished and subject to overfishing; the commission approved Addendum II in October 2025 in response. Red drum may not be kept from federal waters: NOAA Fisheries has prohibited retention in the Gulf's exclusive economic zone since 1988, and on the Atlantic a harvest moratorium and a 2007 executive order bar harvest and sale from federal waters (ASMFC). Inside state waters each state sets its own limits, and the ASMFC plan requires Atlantic states to keep a maximum size so the large spawners go back. Texas raises juvenile red drum in its marine hatcheries for stock enhancement (TPWD).

How anglers fish for them

TPWD's how-to notes cover the craft. Live shrimp under a popping cork or free-lined on a light weight, finger mullet or croaker on a slip-sinker rig, and small blue crabs on the bottom are the standard natural baits. Wading anglers on grass flats throw light gold, copper or silver spoons (weedless where the grass is thick), shallow-running plugs and soft plastics under a cork or hopped along the bottom. Fly anglers sight-cast shrimp, crab and baitfish patterns to cruising and tailing fish. For bull reds in the surf, TPWD favors natural bait such as fresh cut mullet, larger live mullet or blue crab, held in place with a grip sinker. Daily movement between shallows and deeper water follows the tide and water temperature (TPWD), so most anglers plan around moving water.

The mistakes that cost fish

Running an outboard across the flat you mean to fish pushes fish off it; sight-fishers pole or use a trolling motor instead. Landing a lure on a fish's head in skinny water usually spooks it, so lead a cruising fish and let it find the bait. And match the food: SCDNR lists menhaden, spot, anchovies and blue crab as main adult prey, so a bait that looks like what is in the water beats a guess.

Tackle setups

Playbook by water temperature

Month by month

Best waters for redfish (red drum)

63 waters we report on where this species is one of the main fish, each with a daily report.

Common questions