Recreational harvest of spotted seatrout remains open in all other management regions (Panhandle, Big Bend, Tampa Bay, Sarasota Bay, Charlotte Harbor, Southwest, Southeast, and Northeast). This includes all Florida state and inland waters within each management region, as well as adjacent federal waters.
The spotted seatrout management regions are part of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s (FWC) holistic management approach for Florida’s most popular inshore fisheries. This approach uses a suite of fishery-specific and environmental metrics to evaluate the fishery by region, allowing the FWC to be more responsive to local concerns.
To learn more about spotted seatrout, visit MyFWC.com/Marine and select “Spotted Seatrout” under “Recreational Regulations.” This page includes the spotted seatrout annual reviews, which provide summaries of key findings from the annual evaluation of management metrics for each region.
Open season: March 1–Jan. 31.
Closed season: Feb.
Bag limit: Three fish per person.
Slot limit: 15–19 inches.
Over-slot allowance: One fish over-slot allowed per vessel or per person if fishing from shore.
Big Bend
Open season: Year-round.
Closed season: None.
Bag limit: Five fish per person.
Slot limit: 15–19 inches.
Over-slot allowance: One fish over-slot allowed per vessel or per person if fishing from shore.
Tampa Bay, Sarasota Bay, Charlotte Harbor, Southwest, Southeast
Open season: Year-round.
Closed season: None.
Bag limit: Three fish per person.
Slot limit: 15–19 inches.
Over-slot allowance: One fish over-slot allowed per vessel or per person if fishing from shore.
Indian River Lagoon
Open season: Jan.1–Oct. 31.
Closed season: Nov. 1–Dec. 31.
Bag limit: Two fish per person.
Slot limit: 15–19 inches.
Over-slot allowance: None.
Northeast
Open season: Year-round.
Closed season: None.
Bag limit: Three fish per person.
Slot limit: 15–19 inches.
Over-slot allowance: None.
