Speckled trout

1. Winter · deep holes
   0.35
2. Spring flats
   0.75
3. Summer · surf & passes
   0.60
4. Fall feed
   0.80
5. ● Prime · 62-78°F
   0.9562–78°F

1. 1

   small baitfish (mullet, mojarra, anchovies) · baitfish

   primary · finfish

   Diet share

   —

   In season

   Bait equivalents

   cut mullet, finger mullet, mojarra, pinfish

   Season

   Peak May–Oct

   Vulnerable when

   • Moderate on any tide

   Fish lead the diet of slot-size and larger trout: mullet, pinfish, mojarra and menhaden. — Overstreet & Heard 1982

2. 2

   shrimp

   secondary · crustacean

   Diet share

   —

   In season

   Bait equivalents

   live shrimp, fresh dead shrimp, shrimp tip, gulp shrimp

   Season

   Peak Apr–Oct

   Vulnerable when

   • High on rising / high slack tide

   The main food of small trout, and live shrimp under a popping cork is still the panhandle default bait. — Overstreet & Heard 1982

3. 3

   bay anchovies (glass minnows) · glass minnows

   tertiary · finfish · Anchoa mitchilli; Anchoa hepsetus

   Diet share

   —

   In season

   Bait equivalents

   small silver spoon, white tied jig, Clark spoon, Gotcha plug

   Season

   Peak Apr–Oct · lull Dec–Feb

   Vulnerable when

   • High on rising / falling tide in calm-to-moderate surf
   • Moderate on high slack / low slack tide

   Bay anchovy is a principal Mississippi Sound prey item, mostly for small and mid-size trout. — Overstreet & Heard 1982

Water temp

50–88°F

optimum 72°F

Salinity

5–35 PSU

Feeding

crepuscular

Typical size

14–20"

max 39" total

Lifespan

18 yr

mature at 1 yr

Group feeding

none documented

Ambush predator that feeds hardest at dawn and dusk on the flats and in the first trough. Small trout eat shrimp and small crustaceans; slot-size and larger trout eat mostly fish.

Field notes

• Cold-stun symptoms start just below 45°F and trout lose equilibrium at 36–39°F. Fish need deep water to ride out a hard freeze.

  • water temp ≤ 50°F

  — NC Sea Grant / NC DMF; SC DNR

• In winter, trout of all sizes take refuge in deep holes and sloughs in coastal creeks and rivers.

  • migration phase: winter holes

  — NC DMF cold-stun facts

• Diet shifts with size, from shrimp and small crustaceans to fish (anchovies first, then larger baitfish).

  — Overstreet & Heard 1982

• Spawning aggregations pick deep, moving water near passes and channels.

  • migration phase: summer surf

  — Saucier & Baltz 1993

Schooling by phase

winter holes

Concentrated in deep holes, creek bends and rivers

spring flats

Spread across the grass flats and potholes

summer surf

Along the beaches and pass mouths at dawn; spawning

fall feed

Back on the flats feeding hard on shrimp and baitfish

Citations

1. [1]NC Sea Grant / NC DMF; SC DNR · cold stun
2. [2]Overstreet & Heard 1982 · diet shift
3. [3]Saucier & Baltz 1993 · spawning sites
4. [4]FishBase SpecCode 405 · max age size 100 cm TL; 18 yr; Lm 26.8 cm TL (range 25-35)
5. [5]NC Sea Grant / NC DMF cold-stun facts; SC DNR winter-kill trials · cold stun symptoms below ~45°F; loss of equilibrium at 2-4°C (36-39°F)
6. [6]NC DMF cold-stun facts · winter refuge deep holes and sloughs in coastal creeks and rivers
7. [7]Overstreet & Heard 1982 · diet ranked fishes, penaeid shrimps, other crustaceans
8. [8]Saucier & Baltz 1993 (Louisiana) · spawning sites deep moving water near passes and channels
9. [9]general seatrout literature · spawning months unverified for the panhandle — Apr-Sep