The grounds · 180 ft · banks, ledges and wrecks

Gag Grouper

Mycteroperca microlepis. Prime water reaches Tampa in Gulf of Mexico right now (77°F on the bottom). Fish it 49–181 ft down — that is where 85–77°F water sits off Tampa.

Gag Grouper identification illustration
LaneThe grounds · 30 fa (180 ft)
Depth it holds49–262 ft
Prime water64–81°F (workable 64–86°F)
Holds in the column49–262 ft down (on the bottom)
Judged onseabed temperature (RTOFS at depth)
Structurerequires

The water column off Tampa

0 ft91 ft181 ft132 ft of workable water49–181 ft · 85–77°F

The strip is the water itself, coloured by temperature from the surface down to the 181 ft surveyed bottom at that spot — one band per RTOFS model level. The outlined stretch is where Gag Grouper's temperature band (64–86°F) and the depth it holds actually overlap. That thickness is the number that matters: it is how much water you can work, not just whether the spot is warm enough somewhere. One model cycle, not a weekly archive — this holds still while the surface map scrubs.

How it's fished

Heavy tackle with live bait tight to ledges and swiss-cheese bottom.

Region by region — right now

RegionSeasonPrime waterTempFish it atMonths
Gulf of Mexico in season reaches Tampa 77°F 49–181 ft
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Southeast Atlantic in season reaches Cape Hatteras 79°F 49–179 ft
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
"Fish it at" is where this species' temperature band and its holding depth overlap in the water column, from the RTOFS profile (13 levels, 0–300 m) — the depth to actually put a bait, not just the place. "Prime water" is the furthest sampled station on the 30-fathom lane whose seabed temperature sits inside this species' band. It is water, not a sighting report.
Charted grounds on the 30-fathom lane
Flower Garden Banks