CHUM Get the app

Species · Inshore

Gulf Menhaden

Brevoortia patronus

Also called Pogy.

Rules in 0 state rulebooks, checked Sep 22, 2026. Every rule names its source and the day it was last checked; the official rulebook is the final word.

Studio photograph of a Gulf Menhaden (Brevoortia patronus), side view, on a white background

How to tell it

The Gulf's bunker — shoulder spot trailed by smaller spots, keeled belly, tight flipping schools.

Often mistaken for

Two fish that get called Gulf menhaden, and what gives each one away.

Rules for

Every state

StateSizeBagSeasonToday

Not specifically regulated in Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida (Atlantic), Florida (Gulf), Georgia, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia: each state’s rule for unlisted species applies there (on its page).

On the table

Bait and chum.

Related fish

Same genus (Brevoortia): Atlantic Menhaden.

Side by side: Gulf Menhaden vs Atlantic Menhaden, Gulf Menhaden vs Atlantic Thread Herring.

In the app

Point the camera at a Gulf menhaden and the name appears before you take the picture, with these rules for the water you’re standing in. No signal needed, and every catch goes in the log.

Get the app

Questions anglers ask about Gulf menhaden

How do you tell Gulf menhaden from Atlantic menhaden?

Gulf Menhaden: The Gulf's bunker — shoulder spot trailed by smaller spots, keeled belly, tight flipping schools. Atlantic menhaden: Atlantic-side twin.