Representative image
Coasts of 4 countries
What can you catch in the Adriatic Sea?
Adriatic Sea — coastal countries: Croatia, Italy, Montenegro and Albania. This page compares the coasts; fishing spots and local rules are on each coast’s own page.
01 / Discover the coast
Adriatic Sea coasts
The coast with the most fishing spots first. Each coast’s page lists its spots, local rules and its own calendar.
02 / Species
Adriatic Sea fish species
Sorted by how many countries’ coasts they are recorded on: the most widespread first.
Matching species:
Gilthead seabream
Sparus aurata · on 6 coasts
European seabass
Dicentrarchus labrax · on 6 coasts
Common two-banded seabream
Diplodus vulgaris · on 6 coasts
Black scorpionfish
Scorpaena porcus · on 6 coasts
Sand steenbras
Lithognathus mormyrus · on 6 coasts
White seabream
Diplodus sargus · on 5 coasts
Flathead grey mullet
Mugil cephalus · on 5 coasts
Golden grey mullet
Chelon auratus · on 5 coasts
Peacock wrasse
Symphodus tinca · on 5 coasts
Comber
Serranus cabrilla · on 4 coasts
Garfish
Belone belone · on 4 coasts
Mediterranean horse mackerel
Trachurus mediterraneus · on 4 coasts
Shi drum
Umbrina cirrosa · on 3 coasts
Pompano
Trachinotus ovatus · on 3 coasts
Bluefish
Pomatomus saltatrix · on 3 coasts
European squid
Loligo vulgaris · on 2 coasts
Bogue
Boops boops · on 2 coasts
Painted comber
Serranus scriba · on 2 coasts
Greater amberjack
Seriola dumerili · on 2 coasts
Common octopus
Octopus vulgaris · on 2 coasts
Brown meagre
Sciaena umbra · on 2 coasts
European conger
Conger conger · on 2 coasts
Mediterranean moray
Muraena helena · on 2 coasts
Salema porgy
Sarpa salpa · on 2 coasts
Red scorpionfish
Scorpaena scrofa · on 2 coasts
Red porgy
Pagrus pagrus · on 2 coasts
Striped red mullet
Mullus surmuletus · on 2 coasts
Annular seabream
Diplodus annularis · on 2 coasts
Common cuttlefish
Sepia officinalis · on 2 coasts
Picarel
Spicara smaris · on 2 coasts
Atlantic mackerel
Scomber scombrus · on 2 coasts
Atlantic chub mackerel
Scomber colias · on 2 coasts
Common pandora
Pagellus erythrinus · on 2 coasts
Atlantic bonito
Sarda sarda · on 2 coasts
Red mullet
Mullus barbatus · on 2 coasts
Common sole
Solea solea · on 2 coasts
Saddled seabream
Oblada melanurus · on 1 coasts
Sharpsnout seabream
Diplodus puntazzo · on 1 coasts
Common dentex
Dentex dentex · on 1 coasts
Atlantic horse mackerel
Trachurus trachurus · on 1 coasts
European barracuda
Sphyraena sphyraena · on 1 coasts
John Dory
Zeus faber · on 1 coasts
Blotched picarel
Spicara maena · on 1 coasts
Marbled spinefoot
Siganus rivulatus · on 1 coasts
Mediterranean parrotfish
Sparisoma cretense · on 1 coasts
Brill
Scophthalmus rhombus · on 1 coasts
Small-spotted catshark
Scyliorhinus canicula · on 1 coasts
Grass goby
Zosterisessor ophiocephalus · on 1 coasts
Devil firefish
Pterois miles · on 1 coasts
Yellowmouth barracuda
Sphyraena viridensis · on 1 coasts
Atlantic horse mackerel
Trachurus trachurus · on 1 coasts
Turbot
Scophthalmus maximus · on 1 coasts
Greater weever
Trachinus draco · on 1 coasts
Thinlip grey mullet
Chelon ramada · on 1 coasts
Blue crab
Callinectes sapidus · on 1 coasts
Meagre
Argyrosomus regius · on 1 coasts
Tub gurnard
Chelidonichthys lucerna · on 1 coasts
Leaping mullet
Liza saliens · on 1 coasts
Common stingray
Dasyatis pastinaca · on 1 coasts
Forkbeard
Phycis phycis · on 1 coasts
Saddled seabream
Oblada melanura · on 1 coasts
European sardine
Sardina pilchardus · on 1 coasts
Leerfish
Lichia amia · on 1 coasts
European anchovy
Engraulis encrasicolus · on 1 coasts
Black goby
Gobius niger · on 1 coasts
Common eagle ray
Myliobatis aquila · on 1 coasts
Dusky spinefoot
Siganus luridus · on 1 coasts
Thicklip grey mullet
Chelon labrosus · on 1 coasts
Big-scale sand smelt
Atherina boyeri · on 1 coasts
Axillary seabream
Pagellus acarne · on 1 coasts
Common dolphinfish
Coryphaena hippurus · on 1 coasts
Silver-cheeked toadfish
Lagocephalus sceleratus · on 1 coasts
Brown wrasse
Labrus merula · on 1 coasts
No matching species. Try another name or see every species in the catalog.
In season · October
Adriatic Sea fishing calendar
Species with a productive season this month. Seasonal data is a guide, not a guarantee of a catch.
Species counts peak in the Adriatic Sea in Sep, Oct, Jun — the strip shows how many species are productive in each month.
- 22 Jan
- 25 Feb
- 30 Mar
- 38 Apr
- 55 May
- 57 Jun
- 51 Jul
- 52 Aug
- 62 Sep
- 61 Oct
- 30 Nov
- 23 Dec
The height of the strip is the number of productive species in that month; it is not a guarantee of a catch. The turquoise column is the current month.
What is caught in the Adriatic Sea month by month
For each month, the species in season — the most seasonal ones first.
- Jan
- Brill, Small-spotted catshark, Turbot, Thinlip grey mullet, Forkbeard, European seabass and 16 more species
- Feb
- Brill, Small-spotted catshark, Turbot, Thinlip grey mullet, Forkbeard, European seabass and 19 more species
- Mar
- Brill, Grass goby, Atlantic horse mackerel, Turbot, Black goby, Thicklip grey mullet and 24 more species
- Apr
- Blotched picarel, Grass goby, Atlantic horse mackerel, Meagre, Black goby, Thicklip grey mullet and 32 more species
- May
- European barracuda, Blotched picarel, Grass goby, Atlantic horse mackerel, Greater weever, Meagre and 49 more species
- Jun
- European barracuda, Blotched picarel, Axillary seabream, Marbled spinefoot, Mediterranean parrotfish, Devil firefish and 51 more species
- Jul
- Axillary seabream, Common dolphinfish, Marbled spinefoot, Mediterranean parrotfish, Devil firefish, Yellowmouth barracuda and 45 more species
- Aug
- Axillary seabream, Common dolphinfish, Marbled spinefoot, Mediterranean parrotfish, Devil firefish, Yellowmouth barracuda and 46 more species
- Sep
- European barracuda, Blotched picarel, Axillary seabream, Common dolphinfish, Marbled spinefoot, Mediterranean parrotfish and 56 more species
- Oct
- European barracuda, Common dolphinfish, Marbled spinefoot, Mediterranean parrotfish, Small-spotted catshark, Grass goby and 55 more species
- Nov
- Brill, Small-spotted catshark, Atlantic horse mackerel, Turbot, Thinlip grey mullet, Forkbeard and 24 more species
- Dec
- Brill, Small-spotted catshark, Turbot, Thinlip grey mullet, Forkbeard, European seabass and 17 more species
Frequently asked
What can you catch in the Adriatic Sea?
73 species are on record in the Adriatic Sea: Gilthead seabream, European seabass, Common two-banded seabream, Black scorpionfish, Sand steenbras, White seabream, Flathead grey mullet, Golden grey mullet and others.
What can you catch in the Adriatic Sea in each month?
The month with the most species in season is September (62 species). By season: winter: Brill and Small-spotted catshark; spring: Grass goby and Atlantic horse mackerel; summer: Axillary seabream and Marbled spinefoot; autumn: European barracuda and Common dolphinfish.
What can you catch from the shore in the Adriatic Sea?
The easiest species to catch from the shore: Gilthead seabream, European seabass, Common two-banded seabream, Black scorpionfish, Sand steenbras and White seabream.
Which coast has the most fishing spots in the Adriatic Sea?
Ranking: Croatian Adriatic Coast (1,345), followed by Italian Adriatic Coast – Italy (184), Bay of Kotor – Montenegro (103), Montenegro Adriatic Coast (76), Albanian Adriatic Coast (22) and Bay of Vlorë – Albania (10).
How many fishing grounds are there in the Adriatic Sea?
There are 1,740 fishing grounds on record in the Adriatic Sea; each has its own page with the location, the species caught and the conditions that suit it.
