First, I appreciate the TKF community. Four months ago, I had never caught a fish in salt water (without a guide), now I'm confidently filling the freezer with trout and redfish each time I hit the water. One fish I haven't yet caught is black drum so I've resolved to catch this species before the end of the year. I've been primarily in Galveston bay and the secondary bays (Jones Bay, Moses Lake, Clear Lake Channel, etc) and I have fished with live shrimp on the bottom. A few questions:
* are black drum not in the bays this time of year?
* are black drum rare catches in the Galveston area?
* do black drum have a significantly different diet and habitat as red drum?
Thanks!
Black Drum
Re: Black Drum
I used to catch black drum year round in the jetties area. They were regular catches over near San Luis Pass too. All my big ugly catches were on fresh dead shrimp on the bottom, think fish finder rig. They do like mud bottoms.
- Mythman
- TKF 10,000 Club
- Posts: 23699
- Joined: Wed Mar 22, 2006 8:23 am
- Location: Cypress.......watching the weather to go BTB fishing!
Re: Black Drum
Many, many black drum (called "Big Uglies" in this area) migrate from the bays to the Gulf each fall/winter and then return to the bays in the Spring. No matter where they are they can be caught with live or fresh dead blue crabs, crawfish and shrimp.
We use to catch a ton of them each Spring on the Houston Ship Channel as they migrated back from the Gulf into the bays.
We use to catch a ton of them each Spring on the Houston Ship Channel as they migrated back from the Gulf into the bays.
- MobyYack
- TKF 1000 Club
- Posts: 1559
- Joined: Mon Aug 11, 2014 11:01 am
- Location: On the road between Humble & Galveston - Aboard the Pequod - Just below Cpt. Ahab's knee
- Contact:
Re: Black Drum
x2...especially the jetty part....also try bridge pilings where sheepheads hang out as ive had experience with these two groups in the same area a lottexnomad wrote:I used to catch black drum year round in the jetties area. They were regular catches over near San Luis Pass too. All my big ugly catches were on fresh dead shrimp on the bottom, think fish finder rig. They do like mud bottoms.