Red Porgy
Pagrus pagrus. Prime water reaches Cape Hatteras in Southeast Atlantic right now (78°F on the bottom). Fish it 131–179 ft down — that is where 82–80°F water sits off Cape Hatteras.
The water column off Cape Hatteras
The strip is the water itself, coloured by temperature from the surface down to the 179 ft surveyed bottom at that spot — one band per RTOFS model level. The outlined stretch is where Red Porgy's temperature band (61–82°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.
In 3D
How it's fished
Cut bait on a two-hook bottom rig over deep live bottom, often between the snapper drops.
Region by region — right now
| Region | Season | Prime water | Temp | Fish it at | Months |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southeast Atlantic | in season | reaches Cape Hatteras | 78°F | 131–179 ft | J F M A M J J A S O N D |
| Gulf of Mexico | in season | reaches Tampa | 82°F | 131–181 ft | J F M A M J J A S O N D |
| Mid-Atlantic | in season | reaches Montauk | 65°F | 131–181 ft | J F M A M J |