Black bream off Sussex | UK Boat Record, Size & Season

Black bream (Spondyliosoma cantharus). Oval, mostly dark fish with grey to silver stripes, a long-spined dorsal fin and a deeply forked tail. — Black bream (*Spondyliosoma cantharus*). Picture: Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Picture credits

Key facts

Identify it: Oval, mostly dark fish with grey to silver stripes, a long-spined dorsal fin and a deeply forked tail.
Size: Up to about 60cm and 7lb.
Habitat: Sand, mixed and rough ground, wrecks, shellfish beds and weed beds in shallow water. Moves to deeper water in winter.
Off Sussex: Kestrel Warrior lists black bream in summer and August on wrecks, and bream in July and September. Local shore reports mention them in July, September and October.
Around Britain: Spring is breeding season. Summer is the main catch period around southern Britain and Ireland. Shore catches drop in colder months.
Methods: Light tackle, bottom or float fishing with baits such as mackerel, squid strip, sandeel, ragworm, lugworm or mussel. Kestrel Warrior says they are found on wrecks in summer.
Group: Bass, bream and mullet

In short

Black bream is an oval fish, mostly dark, with grey to silver stripes, a long-spined dorsal fin and a deeply forked tail. Sussex IFCA says black bream are fished commercially and recreationally in its district, and local reports name Brighton Marina and Shoreham Harbour. British boat record: confirmed.

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About the black bream

Black bream is an oval fish, mostly dark, with grey to silver stripes, a long-spined dorsal fin and a deeply forked tail. It grows to about 60cm and 7lb. It lives over sand, mixed and rough ground, wrecks, shellfish beds and weed beds in shallow water, then moves to deeper water in winter.

Spring is breeding season, and summer is the main catch period around southern Britain and Ireland. Shore catches drop in the colder months. Kestrel Warrior lists black bream on wrecks in summer, with August named, and bream in July and September. Local shore reports also mention them in July, September and October.

Anglers use light tackle, fishing on the bottom or under a float, with baits such as mackerel, squid strip, sandeel, ragworm, lugworm or mussel.

In Sussex, IFCA says black bream are fished commercially and recreationally in its district, and local reports name Brighton Marina, Shoreham Harbour, Worthing Pier and Selsey east beach. Sussex IFCA also has a byelaw protecting juvenile black bream and bass, so it pays to measure before you keep anything.

On the boat

Kestrel Warrior lists black bream on wrecks in summer, with August named, and bream in July and September. Light tackle suits them. Bottom or float fishing with mackerel, squid strip, sandeel, ragworm, lugworm or mussel are the baits the sources name. Local shore reports also mention them in July, September and October. Shore catches drop in the colder months, and the fish move to deeper water in winter, so summer is the sensible time to look for them.

British boat-caught record

Confirmed record

Weight: 6lb 14oz 4dr (3.125kg)
Where: Wreck off the south Devon coast, Torquay, Devon
When: 1977
Angler: J A Garlick

Confirmed British boat-caught record: 6lb 14oz 4dr (3.125kg), caught by J A Garlick on a wreck off the south Devon coast, Torquay, Devon, in 1977. It is listed by the British Record Fish Committee. The official weight-based boat records were frozen in June 2024, and newer boat claims are by length only. For black bream the qualifying length is 50cm.

How we label records: the British boat-caught records table explains confirmed, claimed and none listed.

Care and rules

The UK minimum size is 23cm. Sussex IFCA enforces a 230mm minimum and has a byelaw protecting juvenile black bream and bass. Measure any fish you plan to keep and return the small ones. Rules change: check the current rules before you fish.

Did you know?

The official boat record black bream, 6lb 14oz 4dr, was taken on a wreck off Torquay in 1977. Today a boat claim needs a fish of at least 50cm in length to qualify.

Questions about the black bream

What is the British boat-caught record for black bream?

Confirmed British boat-caught record: 6lb 14oz 4dr (3.125kg), caught by J A Garlick on a wreck off the south Devon coast, Torquay, Devon, in 1977. It is listed by the British Record Fish Committee. The official weight-based boat records were frozen in June 2024, and newer boat claims are by length only. For black bream the qualifying length is 50cm.

Is black bream caught off the Sussex coast?

Yes. Sussex IFCA says black bream are fished commercially and recreationally in its district, and local reports name Brighton Marina and Shoreham Harbour.

When is the best time to catch black bream?

Off Sussex: Kestrel Warrior lists black bream in summer and August on wrecks, and bream in July and September. Local shore reports mention them in July, September and October. Around Britain: Spring is breeding season. Summer is the main catch period around southern Britain and Ireland. Shore catches drop in colder months.

How big does a black bream get?

Up to about 60cm and 7lb.