This common fish is found Gulfwide, from brackish estuarine waters out to nearshore offshore waters. Black drum are found on mud, sand and shell bottoms and medium to large specimens are very common on oyster reefs.
Black drum are heavy-bodied fish with large heads. Fish up to about 15 pounds have 4 or 5 wide vertical black bars set on a sliver-gray body. The bars fade as the fish grow larger, eventually disappearing. All sizes of black drum can be identified by the whisker-like barbels under their chin.
Black drum from 1 to 10 pounds are very common and often referred to as "puppy drum". Larger fish, called "bull drum", are not uncommon to 40 pounds and are occasionally even larger.
