Florida Keys • Upper and Middle Florida Keys
When do red drum bite in the Florida Keys?
Red Drum are open year round in the Keys, tailing on the backcountry flats of Florida Bay, in 72-88 F water with the best bite between 83 and 86 F. These bands are drafted from published thermal preferences rather than measured in this water, and the daily FishIntel report says where that water sits this morning.
How does FishIntel forecast the best days to catch red drum?
FishIntel reads NOAA and satellite ocean data, including sea surface temperature breaks and chlorophyll edges, and turns changes near your zone into a plain-English red drum forecast. See a sample report at fishintel.ai/sample-report.
72-88°F
Best between 83-86°F.
FWC Southwest region, which runs through the Keys to the Miami-Dade line: open year round, an 18 to 27 in total length slot, 1 per person and 2 per vessel (FWC, read 2026-09-30). Red drum may not be kept in federal waters, Gulf or Atlantic (50 CFR 622.92(b) and 697.7(f), eCFR read 2026-09-30). Regulations change, so check the current rules for the species you are targeting before treating a rating as a plan.
Confirm current rules before you keep a fish. Official rules: FWC, NOAA Fisheries.
These bands are NOT yet calibrated against observed water for Upper and Middle Florida Keys and come from published thermal preferences rather than a season of local observations.
A band and a season tell you whether red drum is on the cards this month. They do not tell you where the water is doing something today. A FishIntel report reads the actual sea surface temperature, chlorophyll fronts and current convergence over your own zone every morning, and says which of those edges is worth running to.
FishIntel was co-founded by Captain Kit Carson and Alan Lanham.