🗓️ Fishing Calendar by Month
Turkey — monthly fishing guide for the Aegean & Mediterranean coasts
Last updated: 07.07.2026 · Closed seasons may vary by region; check the current regulations before fishing.
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Highlights for July:
Peak season: Sardine, Chub mackerel, Squid, Common pandora, Common dentex
· Good season: Two-banded bream, Red mullet, Horse mackerel
| Species | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | of October | Nov | Search |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sea bass | · | · | ●● | ●● | ●● | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ●● | ●● | ●●● | ●●● |
| Gilt-head bream | · | · | ●● | ●● | ●●● | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ●● | ●●● | ●●● | · |
| Bluefish | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | ●● | ●●● | ●●● | ●● | · |
| Bonito | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | ●● | ●●● | ●●● | ●● | · |
| Mackerel | ●● | ●● | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | ●● | ●●● | ●●● |
| Anchovy | ●● | ●● | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | ●● | ●●● | ●●● |
| Sardine | · | · | · | ●● | ●● | ●●● | ●●● | ●● | ●● | · | · | · |
| Chub mackerel | · | · | · | · | ●● | ●●● | ●●● | ●● | ●● | · | · | · |
| Squid | · | · | · | ●● | ●● | ●●● | ●●● | ●● | · | · | · | · |
| Two-banded bream | ●● | ●● | ●● | ●●● | ●●● | ●● | ●● | ●● | ●●● | ●●● | ●● | ●● |
| Red mullet | · | · | ●● | ●●● | ●●● | ●● | ●● | ●● | ●●● | ●● | · | · |
| Horse mackerel | ●● | ●● | ●● | ●● | ●● | ●● | ●● | ●● | ●●● | ●●● | ●● | ●● |
| Common pandora | · | · | · | · | ●● | ●●● | ●●● | ●● | · | · | · | · |
| Common dentex | · | · | · | · | ●● | ●●● | ●●● | ●●● | ●● | · | · | · |
●●● Peak season
●● Good season
✕ Closed season
· Low activity
Detailed Month-by-Month Guide
January
●● Good: Mackerel, Anchovy, Two-banded bream, Horse mackerel
February
●● Good: Mackerel, Anchovy, Two-banded bream, Horse mackerel
March
●● Good: Sea bass, Gilt-head bream, Two-banded bream, Red mullet, Horse mackerel
April
●●● Peak: Two-banded bream, Red mullet
●● Good: Sea bass, Gilt-head bream, Sardine, Squid, Horse mackerel
May
●●● Peak: Gilt-head bream, Two-banded bream, Red mullet
●● Good: Sea bass, Sardine, Chub mackerel, Squid, Horse mackerel, Common pandora, Common dentex
June
●●● Peak: Sardine, Chub mackerel, Squid, Common pandora, Common dentex
●● Good: Two-banded bream, Red mullet, Horse mackerel
✕ Ban: Sea bass, Gilt-head bream
📍 July
●●● Peak: Sardine, Chub mackerel, Squid, Common pandora, Common dentex
●● Good: Two-banded bream, Red mullet, Horse mackerel
✕ Ban: Sea bass, Gilt-head bream
August
●●● Peak: Common dentex
●● Good: Bluefish, Bonito, Sardine, Chub mackerel, Squid, Two-banded bream, Red mullet, Horse mackerel, Common pandora
✕ Ban: Sea bass, Gilt-head bream
September
●●● Peak: Bluefish, Bonito, Two-banded bream, Red mullet, Horse mackerel
●● Good: Sea bass, Gilt-head bream, Sardine, Chub mackerel, Common dentex
October
●●● Peak: Gilt-head bream, Bluefish, Bonito, Two-banded bream, Horse mackerel
●● Good: Sea bass, Mackerel, Anchovy, Red mullet
November
●●● Peak: Sea bass, Gilt-head bream, Mackerel, Anchovy
●● Good: Bluefish, Bonito, Two-banded bream, Horse mackerel
December
●●● Peak: Sea bass, Mackerel, Anchovy
●● Good: Two-banded bream, Horse mackerel
Critical Season Notes
🎯 September–October: The Most Active Period of the Year
Bluefish and bonito migrate south from the Black Sea. Along this migration route stretching from the Bosphorus to the Aegean, shore fishing peaks. Wind direction is critical — the Poyraz (NE wind) leaves the gulfs exposed, while the Lodos (SW wind) opens up the western bays of the Aegean.
Bluefish and bonito migrate south from the Black Sea. Along this migration route stretching from the Bosphorus to the Aegean, shore fishing peaks. Wind direction is critical — the Poyraz (NE wind) leaves the gulfs exposed, while the Lodos (SW wind) opens up the western bays of the Aegean.
🦈 June–August: Fishing Ban & Alternatives
Fishing for sea bass and gilt-head bream is restricted during the spawning season (dates vary by region). During this period, squid, sardine and chub mackerel fishing is permitted. Night squid fishing (jigging) is a popular alternative in the Aegean bays.
Fishing for sea bass and gilt-head bream is restricted during the spawning season (dates vary by region). During this period, squid, sardine and chub mackerel fishing is permitted. Night squid fishing (jigging) is a popular alternative in the Aegean bays.
❄️ November–February: Winter Fishing
Anchovy and mackerel peak in the Black Sea. In the Aegean, whiting, red mullet and two-banded bream can be caught. Weather conditions are tougher; choosing a sheltered bay becomes important. Check the bay safety score from BalıkTahmini.
Anchovy and mackerel peak in the Black Sea. In the Aegean, whiting, red mullet and two-banded bream can be caught. Weather conditions are tougher; choosing a sheltered bay becomes important. Check the bay safety score from BalıkTahmini.
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Which Bay Should I Fish This Month?
The calendar above answers the "which species, when" question. For the "Where?" question, check the current wind, wave and cove safety score.
Open the Map — See Bay Conditions →