Red Drum
Sciaenops ocellatus
For red drum, minimum length = 20 inches, with no maximum length limit. Daily bag = 3 fish.
Identify your catch
Usually reddish bronze, but may look silvery or dark copper. Typically has a large black mark high on the tail base; some individuals have several marks.
Habitat on Calaveras
Shoreline cattails and bulrushes, dam riprap and an intake canal provide cover and structure.
Fishing approach
Lake guide guidance: TPWD lists natural baits for catfish and red drum, spoons for drum and hybrids, and artificial lures around shoreline bass cover.
Fishing guidance describes documented approaches, not a promise of fish activity today.
No active lake-specific advisory or possession ban was named in the reviewed DSHS directory. This does not guarantee that fish are safe to eat.
Harvest permission and eating restrictions are separate.
General species guide
Young red drum occupy coastal bays and surf habitats. TPWD documents stocked freshwater fisheries including Braunig and Calaveras.
General Red Drum profile →Sources & lake evidence
TPWD lake guide and reviewed fisheries evidence establish the listed species or group. Historical survey records do not establish current abundance.
Lake harvest rules ↗Eating guidance ↗Lake habitat & fishing guide ↗Fisheries survey · species evidence ↗Species identification ↗