Speckled trout

A drum, not a trout

Spotted seatrout belong to the croaker family and are close kin to red drum, black drum and Atlantic croaker (TPWD). Round black spots cover the back, the second dorsal fin and the tail, and one or two canine teeth sit at the tip of the upper jaw. In Texas, males average about 19 inches and females about 25, and most fish weigh 2 to 3 pounds (TPWD). Females grow faster and live longer: Louisiana Sea Grant notes that few males live past 5, so trout of 5 pounds and more are nearly all females, the 'sow' trout of Texas anglers. Fish mature at one to two years and can live past 12.

Staying close to home

Seatrout are largely non-migratory. Tagging in Louisiana and Texas found most recaptures in the same bay system, and the ASMFC says Atlantic fish usually stay within five to ten miles of their home estuary, though some Chesapeake Bay fish travel to North Carolina in fall. Within a bay the pattern is seasonal: TPWD describes fish over shallow seagrass in spring and summer, a move to deeper bay water and the Gulf as water cools in fall, and a return to the shallows in spring. In dry autumns many run up rivers and bayous with the first cool weather, and dredged harbors and channels hold fish too.

Spawning and cold

The spawning season is long. Louisiana Sea Grant reports that spawning starts around 68°F, peaks between 77 and 86°F and runs from April to September, with males drumming in large aggregations from sunset; SCDNR gives the same April-to-September window for South Carolina. Spawning sites differ by region: Louisiana Sea Grant describes passes and channels with good tidal flow, TPWD shallow grassy areas inside the bays. Cold is the main natural threat. North Carolina Sea Grant reports cold-stun symptoms just below 45°F, and the North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries has closed the fishery after severe cold-stun events.

How anglers fish for them

TPWD's beginner notes call the popping cork rig the most popular setup: live shrimp, the top bait, or a soft plastic under a cork that is popped now and then to suggest feeding. Take off the cork and use a very small weight and it becomes a free-shrimping rig for drifting or strong current. Jigs fished under lights at night, spoons in the warm months and slow fish-shaped lures in cold weather round out the artificials, and floating topwater lures over shallow water in summer are a method for larger trout. In summer and fall, gulls diving over the water often mark trout pushing shrimp to the surface (TPWD).

The mistakes that cost fish

A hard hook set or a locked drag can tear the soft mouth, so keep steady pressure and a lighter drag. In hot weather, fish the shallows only early and late and move to drop-offs, channels and oyster reefs by midday (TPWD). And ice the catch at once: TPWD notes the meat loses quality quickly if left warm.

Tackle setups

Playbook by water temperature

Month by month

Best waters for speckled trout

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

Common questions