Representative image
Coasts of 3 countries
What can you catch in the Ionian Sea?
Ionian Sea — coastal countries: Greece, Italy and Albania. This page compares the coasts; fishing spots and local rules are on each coast’s own page.
01 / Discover the coast
Ionian 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
Ionian Sea fish species
Sorted by how many countries’ coasts they are recorded on: the most widespread first.
Matching species:
Common sole
Solea solea · on 3 coasts
Comber
Serranus cabrilla · on 3 coasts
Gilthead seabream
Sparus aurata · on 3 coasts
Bluefish
Pomatomus saltatrix · on 3 coasts
Mediterranean horse mackerel
Trachurus mediterraneus · on 3 coasts
Common two-banded seabream
Diplodus vulgaris · on 3 coasts
Garfish
Belone belone · on 3 coasts
European seabass
Dicentrarchus labrax · on 3 coasts
Golden grey mullet
Chelon auratus · on 3 coasts
Black scorpionfish
Scorpaena porcus · on 3 coasts
Sand steenbras
Lithognathus mormyrus · on 3 coasts
Flathead grey mullet
Mugil cephalus · on 3 coasts
Greater amberjack
Seriola dumerili · on 2 coasts
European barracuda
Sphyraena sphyraena · on 2 coasts
Common cuttlefish
Sepia officinalis · on 2 coasts
Bogue
Boops boops · on 2 coasts
Picarel
Spicara smaris · on 2 coasts
European squid
Loligo vulgaris · on 2 coasts
Mediterranean parrotfish
Sparisoma cretense · on 2 coasts
European anchovy
Engraulis encrasicolus · on 2 coasts
Leerfish
Lichia amia · on 2 coasts
Shi drum
Umbrina cirrosa · on 2 coasts
Pompano
Trachinotus ovatus · on 2 coasts
Atlantic horse mackerel
Trachurus trachurus · on 2 coasts
Atlantic chub mackerel
Scomber colias · on 2 coasts
Greater weever
Trachinus draco · on 2 coasts
European sardine
Sardina pilchardus · on 2 coasts
Common dolphinfish
Coryphaena hippurus · on 2 coasts
Striped red mullet
Mullus surmuletus · on 2 coasts
Atlantic bonito
Sarda sarda · on 2 coasts
Atlantic mackerel
Scomber scombrus · on 2 coasts
Red porgy
Pagrus pagrus · on 2 coasts
White seabream
Diplodus sargus · on 2 coasts
Peacock wrasse
Symphodus tinca · on 2 coasts
Red mullet
Mullus barbatus · on 2 coasts
Big-scale sand smelt
Atherina boyeri · on 2 coasts
European conger
Conger conger · on 2 coasts
Common octopus
Octopus vulgaris · on 2 coasts
Mediterranean moray
Muraena helena · on 2 coasts
Salema porgy
Sarpa salpa · on 2 coasts
Common pandora
Pagellus erythrinus · on 2 coasts
Brill
Scophthalmus rhombus · on 1 coasts
Saddled seabream
Oblada melanurus · on 1 coasts
Round sardinella
Sardinella aurita · on 1 coasts
Sharpsnout seabream
Diplodus puntazzo · on 1 coasts
John Dory
Zeus faber · on 1 coasts
Blotched picarel
Spicara maena · on 1 coasts
Marbled spinefoot
Siganus rivulatus · on 1 coasts
Annular seabream
Diplodus annularis · on 1 coasts
Painted comber
Serranus scriba · on 1 coasts
Grey triggerfish
Balistes capriscus · on 1 coasts
Grass goby
Zosterisessor ophiocephalus · on 1 coasts
Small-spotted catshark
Scyliorhinus canicula · on 1 coasts
Common dentex
Dentex dentex · on 1 coasts
Mediterranean rainbow wrasse
Coris julis · on 1 coasts
Turbot
Scophthalmus maximus · 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
Devil firefish
Pterois miles · on 1 coasts
Yellowmouth barracuda
Sphyraena viridensis · on 1 coasts
Thicklip grey mullet
Chelon labrosus · on 1 coasts
Brown meagre
Sciaena umbra · on 1 coasts
Dusky spinefoot
Siganus luridus · on 1 coasts
Forkbeard
Phycis phycis · on 1 coasts
Black goby
Gobius niger · on 1 coasts
Saddled seabream
Oblada melanura · on 1 coasts
Common eagle ray
Myliobatis aquila · on 1 coasts
Axillary seabream
Pagellus acarne · on 1 coasts
Brown wrasse
Labrus merula · on 1 coasts
Red scorpionfish
Scorpaena scrofa · on 1 coasts
No matching species. Try another name or see every species in the catalog.
In season · October
Ionian 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 Ionian Sea in Oct, Sep, May — the strip shows how many species are productive in each month.
- 18 Jan
- 20 Feb
- 37 Mar
- 53 Apr
- 56 May
- 51 Jun
- 44 Jul
- 52 Aug
- 61 Sep
- 64 Oct
- 48 Nov
- 19 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 Ionian 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 squid and 12 more species
- Feb
- Brill, Small-spotted catshark, Turbot, Thinlip grey mullet, Forkbeard, European squid and 14 more species
- Mar
- Grass goby, Thicklip grey mullet, Tub gurnard, Brill, Turbot, Black goby and 31 more species
- Apr
- Grass goby, Thicklip grey mullet, Blotched picarel, Tub gurnard, Meagre, Black goby and 47 more species
- May
- Blotched picarel, Brown meagre, Painted comber, Meagre, Leaping mullet, Common stingray and 50 more species
- Jun
- Blotched picarel, Brown meagre, Axillary seabream, Marbled spinefoot, Painted comber, Meagre and 45 more species
- Jul
- Axillary seabream, Marbled spinefoot, Painted comber, Leaping mullet, Common stingray, Devil firefish and 38 more species
- Aug
- Axillary seabream, Marbled spinefoot, Painted comber, Leaping mullet, Common stingray, Devil firefish and 46 more species
- Sep
- Blotched picarel, Brown meagre, Axillary seabream, Marbled spinefoot, Painted comber, Meagre and 55 more species
- Oct
- Grass goby, Thicklip grey mullet, Tub gurnard, Brown meagre, Marbled spinefoot, Small-spotted catshark and 58 more species
- Nov
- Tub gurnard, Brill, Small-spotted catshark, Turbot, Thinlip grey mullet, Forkbeard and 42 more species
- Dec
- Brill, Small-spotted catshark, Turbot, Thinlip grey mullet, Forkbeard, European squid and 13 more species
Frequently asked
What can you catch in the Ionian Sea?
74 species are on record in the Ionian Sea: Common sole, Comber, Gilthead seabream, Bluefish, Mediterranean horse mackerel, Common two-banded seabream, Garfish, European seabass and others.
What can you catch in the Ionian Sea in each month?
The month with the most species in season is October (64 species). By season: winter: Brill and Small-spotted catshark; spring: Grass goby and Thicklip grey mullet; summer: Axillary seabream and Marbled spinefoot; autumn: Brown meagre and Tub gurnard.
What can you catch from the shore in the Ionian Sea?
The easiest species to catch from the shore: Comber, Gilthead seabream, Bluefish, Mediterranean horse mackerel, Common two-banded seabream and Garfish.
Which coast has the most fishing spots in the Ionian Sea?
Ranking: Greek Ionian Sea – Greece (216), followed by Italian Ionian Coast – Italy (94) and Albanian Ionian Coast (11).
How many fishing grounds are there in the Ionian Sea?
There are 321 fishing grounds on record in the Ionian Sea; each has its own page with the location, the species caught and the conditions that suit it.
