A Redfish prefer to live near barrier islands. Spawning-class reds concentrate in fall along beaches in the vacinity of inlets and passes, where currents carry their fertilized eggs shoreward. Once he eggs hatch, larval red fish move to estuaries and sea grass areas, where they seek protection form predators. Juvenile fish grow about one inch per month, on average, remaining in the bays for three to four years before moving into the near shore ocean to repeat the cycle. Spawning occurs in fall.
Mature adults move close to the passes and inlets well in advance of their breeding activity.
Larger fish continue to grow rapidly in length and at 3-5 years they move offshore. Indoor reproduction tanks and outdoor ponds are expected to produce some 20 million fingerlings for distribution along the coast every year. Stock enhancement is neither a replacement for nor an alternative in natural reproduction. Think of it as a safety net, a tool, biologist weave so carefully, that the last of a species cannot slip through. The tightened restrictions on nets along the entire Gulf Coast reds are fast on the road to recovery.