Texas BiteCast

Cobia

Rachycentron canadum · Ling, lemonfish, crab-eater

Ling are the sight-casting fish of the nearshore Gulf. From spring into September they cruise the surface around the nearshore rigs, buoys, anchored shrimpboats and rays on calm, sunny days, and a big one will eat a bucktail tossed in front of it. Texas cobia have to be 40 inches to keep and the limit is one, so most of the fun is in finding them.

October: FairFewer fish as the water cools.

Best cobia spots offshore right now →How to use the map

Texas and federal rules · Checked Oct 22, 2026

Daily bag
1 per person (Texas) · federal: 1 per person, 2 per vessel
Size
40 in total length (Texas) · 36 in fork length (federal)
Season
Open all year

Texas license with saltwater endorsement to land fish from state or federal waters.

Check the current rules ↗

At a glance

Best months
Apr–Sep; arrival builds through April
Depth
30–150 ft; nearshore rigs, reefs and wrecks
Water temp
70–84 °F
Conditions
Calm, sunny days for sight-casting
Bait
2–4 oz bucktail jig; live eels, croaker or pinfish

How to identify them

  • Long, dark brown body with a broad, flattened head and a jutting lower jaw; looks like a shark or a giant remora in the water.
  • A dark stripe from the snout through the eye to the tail, between two pale bands (clearest on smaller fish).
  • A row of 7–9 short, separate spines in front of the long soft dorsal fin.

Month by month

Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
  • JanSlowFew in Texas waters; most cobia winter farther south.
  • FebSlowSame.
  • MarFairFirst fish show on the nearshore structure as the water warms toward 70 °F.
  • AprGoodThe run builds: rig legs, buoys and weedlines on calm days.
  • MayPeakPrime: sight-casting around the nearshore rigs and anchored shrimpboats.
  • JunPeakPrime; check every buoy, ray and floating object you pass.
  • JulPeakSteady on the nearshore rigs in clean green water.
  • AugPeakSame; early mornings before the sea breeze.
  • SepGoodStill good until the first strong fronts.
  • OctFairFewer fish as the water cools.
  • NovFairStragglers on the nearshore structure.
  • DecSlowMostly gone.

Where to find them

Nearshore rigs and reefs

Standing platforms in 30–150 ft are the classic ling water: they cruise the surface around the legs and the shade. Reefs, wrecks and reefed rigs hold them deeper.

Anything floating

Buoys, weedlines, floating debris, big rays and turtles: cobia follow them. Anchored shrimpboats culling bycatch draw them in summer.

Water

Clean green to blue-green water with some current. They take both cleaner and greener water than most pelagics.

How to catch them

Run and look

On calm, sunny days run the nearshore rigs and check each one: ling often sit just under the surface near the legs or follow the boat up. Keep a rigged jig ready the whole time.

Sight-casting

A 2–4 oz bucktail jig (chartreuse, brown, white) cast past and in front of the fish, then worked back across its path. If it follows without eating, switch to a live bait.

Live bait

Live eels, croaker, pinfish or cigar minnows free-lined or dropped on the shady side of the rig. Chumming at a rig brings them up.

Tackle

A spinning rod with 30–50 lb line, a 60 lb leader and a 7/0 hook. Cobia fight hard and long; a gaff or big net for keepers.

Reading the conditions

Calm and sunny

Sight-casting needs flat water and light. On rough or cloudy days, fish live baits on the structure instead.

Water temperature

They arrive as the water warms past about 68–70 °F in spring and leave with the fall fronts.

Current

Some current along the structure is better than slack water; it lines the fish up on the up-current side.

Tips from the water

  • Leave a rigged bucktail on the deck from the moment you leave the jetties.
  • Measure before you gaff: Texas needs 40 inches.
  • A cobia that follows the boat will often eat a live bait dropped right beside it.
  • Watch the shadow of every buoy and floating log you pass.

Common mistakes

  • Gaffing a green fish: cobia go wild in the boat. Wear them out first.
  • Casting right on top of the fish.
  • Keeping a fish under 40 in in Texas waters (the federal 36 in fork length is a different measurement).

Handling and release

Cobia thrash violently when landed; get keepers into the fish box quickly. Release short fish in the water. Excellent eating.

Use it today

By port: Sabine · Bolivar · Galveston · Freeport · Sargent · Matagorda · Port O'Connor · Rockport · Port Aransas · Corpus Christi · Port Mansfield · South Padre

Sources (3)

Other species

Regulations change: confirm bag and size limits in the TPWD Outdoor Annual and with NOAA Fisheries (federal waters) before you keep a fish. Not for navigation.