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RECREATIONAL SIZE AND POSSESSION LIMITS

It is illegal to sell any seafood taken with a recreational license.

Species

Minimum length in inchesNumber of fish bag/possession
Spotted Seatrout15 TL15
Red Drum*18 TL to 30 TL3
Flounder12 TL10
Sheepshead14 TL15
Gray Snapper**12 TL10
Tarpon***75 FL1 per vessel
Tripletail18 TL3
Cobia36 FL2
Spanish Mackerel****12 FL15
King Mackerel****24 FL3
Black DrumNo LimitNo Limit
Sand Seatrout (White Trout)No LimitNo Limit
Kingfish (Ground Mullet)No LimitNo Limit
Florida PompanoNo LimitNo Limit
Striped MulletNo LimitNo Limit

*Recreational fishermen may retain only one red drum over 30 inches

**See additional details in Reef Fish section for harvest in aggregate with other snapper species

***May not remove fish from water if over 40” in length unless harvesting within specified limits

****For openings and closings of federally regulated fish and updated size limits, visit gulfcouncil.org

TL – Total Length – Straight line distance from tip of snout to tip of tail

FL – Fork Length – Straight line distance from tip of snout to fork of tail

Species Minimum length in inches Number of fish bag/possession Aggregate Total Bag/Possession
Red Snapper* 16 TL 2
Greater Amberjack 34 FL 1
Gray Triggerfish 15 FL 1 20 Reef Fish Aggregate
Vermilion Snapper 10 TL 10
Lane Snapper 8 TL 20
Almaco Jack No Limit
Goldface Tilefish No Limit
Anchor Tilefish No Limit
Tilefish No Limit
Blackline Tilefish No Limit
Blueline Tilefish No Limit
Mutton Snapper 18 TL 5 10 Snapper Aggregate
Gray, Schoolmaster, Cubera, Dog, Mahogany, and Yellowtail Snappers 12 TL 10
Queen, Blackfin, Silk, and Wenchman Snappers No Limit
Warsaw Grouper No Limit 1 per vessel 4 Grouper Aggregate
Red and Yellowfin Groupers 20 TL 4
Black Grouper 24 TL
Scamp 16 TL
Yellowmouth, Yellowedge, Misty, and Snowy Groupers No Limit
Rock and Red Hind Groupers No Limit
Gag Grouper 24 TL 2
Speckled Hind No Limit 1 per vessel
Lesser Amberjack and Banded Rudderfish 14 FL to 22 FL 5 5 Fish Aggregate
Hogfish 14 FL 5
Goliath Grouper No Take No Take
Nassau Grouper No Take No Take
*Reporting is required for Red Snapper trips and landings through the Tails n’ Scales program For openings and closings of federally regulated fish and updated size limits, visit gulfcouncil.org TL – Total Length – Straight line distance from tip of snout to tip of tail FL – Fork Length – Straight line distance from tip of snout to fork of tail
SpeciesMinimum length in inchesNumber of fish bag/possession
Yellowfin Tuna27 CFL3
Bigeye Tuna27 CFLNo Limit
Swordfish47 Lower Jaw FLNo Limit
Blue Marlin99 Lower Jaw FLNo Limit
White Marlin66 Lower Jaw FLNo Limit
Sailfish63 Lower Jaw FLNo Limit
Longbill SpearfishNo TakeNo Take
Dolphin (Mahi Mahi)No LimitNo Limit

For openings and closings of federally regulated fish and updated size limits, visit the Highly Migratory Species Compliance Guide, https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/atlantic-highly-migratory-species/atlantic-highly-migratory-species-fishery-compliance-guides

FL – Fork Length – Straight line distance from tip of snout to fork of tail

CFL – Curved Fork Length – Tip of the upper jaw to the fork of tail measured along the contour of the middle of the body

SpeciesMinimum length in inchesNumber of fish bag/possession
Large Coastals and Pelagics – Blacktip, Spinner, Bull, Tiger, Lemon, Nurse, Scalloped Hammerhead, Great Hammerhead, Smooth Hammerhead, Shortfin Mako, Porbeagle, Thresher, Blue, Oceanic Whitetip37 TL1 per person up to 3 per vessel
Small Coastals – Atlantic Sharpnose, Finetooth, Blacknose, Bonnethead25 TL4

For openings and closings of federally regulated fish and updated size limits, visit the Highly Migratory Species Compliance Guide, https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/atlantic-highly-migratory-species/atlantic-highly-migratory-species-fishery-compliance-guides

Current Shark Species Prohibited from harvest: Sand Tiger, Bigeye Sand tiger, Whale, Basking, White, Dusky, Bignose, Galapagos, Night, Caribbean Reef, Narrowtooth, Caribbean Sharpnose, Smalltail, Atlantic Angel, Longfin mako, Bigeye Thresher, Sevengill, Sixgill, Bigeye Sixgill, Sandbar, and Silky

Blue Crab (Hard Shell)5*No Limit
Blue Crab (Soft Shell)No LimitNo Limit

*As measured from the tip of one lateral spine across the back shell to the tip of the opposite lateral spine

Federal regulations may differ from state regulations. Please refer to the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council for Federal Regulations: (888) 833-1844 | gulfcouncil.org.

The information on this page is an abstract of the rules and regulations in effect at the time of publishing.  Fishermen are responsible for obeying fishing rules in full. Complete laws are available at the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources, 1141 Bayview Avenue, Suite 101, Biloxi, Mississippi 39530 and on the agencies website, dmr.ms.gov.

For more information call the DMR at (228) 374-5000.