Waterlands

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Spotted seatroutRetention open

Channel · Florida

Bear Cut

25.73°N · 80.16°W · Channel · Biscayne Bay

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Best score today · 7 AM · Spotted seatrout

79/100Great
Now
576 PM EDT
Best window
6-8 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing1.7 ft ▼

Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine

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24-hour conditions

Sunday, Sep 20 · 8 AM

Time8A
Score56Good
Tide1.3 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb0.4 kn · toward E
Wind2 kn NWgusts 5 · steady
Sea stateLight chop0.5 ft · 5 s
Air temp75°Warm
WeatherOvercast35% chance of rain
Water86°FBias corrected

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Atlantic state waters (Nassau through Miami-Dade counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Spotted seatrout

Retention open
Daily limit
3 per day
Possession
Not published
Size
Slot 15 to 19 in, total length. One fish over 19 inches per vessel, or per person when fishing from shore, counted in the bag limit.
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
Must stay whole until landed ashore. For-hire captain and crew may not keep a bag limit. Special rules apply in Biscayne National Park. Hook and line or cast net only. No multiple hooks with natural bait. No snatching. Open year-round. Regional rules apply in inland, state and adjacent federal waters. New regional rules took effect April 1, 2026.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Spotted Seatrout, read Sep 13

Other species here

  • Atlantic croaker Retention open (50 per day)
  • Black drum Retention open (5 per day)
  • Bluefish Retention open (3 per day)
  • Bonefish Catch & release (No retention)
  • Cobia Retention open (1 per day)
  • Crevalle jack Retention open
  • Florida pompano Retention open (6 per day)
  • Gag grouper Closed (No retention)
  • Gray snapper Retention open (5 per day (10 snapper combined))
  • Gray triggerfish Retention open (10 per day)
  • Greater amberjack Retention open (1 per day)
  • King mackerel Retention open (2 per day)
  • Mahi-mahi Retention open (5 per day)
  • Permit Retention open (2 per day)
  • Red drum Retention open (1 per day)
  • Red grouper Retention open (3 per day (3 Atlantic grouper and tilefish combined))
  • Red snapper Check regulations
  • Sailfish Retention open (1 per day (1 billfish combined))
  • Sheepshead Retention open (8 per day)
  • Snook Retention open (1 per day)
  • Southern flounder Retention open (5 per day)
  • Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
  • Spot Retention open (50 per day)
  • Summer flounder Retention open (5 per day)
  • Tarpon Catch & release (No retention)
  • Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Spotted seatrout is best here

Shoulder season for Spotted seatrout · 10 more weeks at shoulder

Spotted seatrout season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Spotted seatrout · 10 more weeks at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Spotted seatrout in Florida

Spot profile

Bear Cut

Depth
7-20 ftSlope
Structure
Channel · Inner · Semi-exposedChannel · slope
Season
Shoulder seasonSpotted seatrout

NOAA NCEI DEM, sampled Sep 13 on a 3.4 m grid. Depths are feet below NAVD 88, not chart datum (MLLW), so they can differ from a chart by a few feet. Not for navigation.

About this spot

Fishing Bear Cut

Bear Cut is a channel in Biscayne Bay, Florida. Depth is 7-20 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads channel, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 18 species here; the best right now are common snook, crevalle jack and Atlantic tarpon. It is peak season now for common snook and crevalle jack, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, gray snapper, red drum and permit. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through November. Crevalle jack peak from April through May and from September through November. Atlantic tarpon peak from March through June.

Tackle & technique

Spotted seatrout
Trout hold over grass beds and sandy potholes in 2 to 8 feet of water most of the year and slide into channels, deep creek bends and canals during cold snaps. A live shrimp under a slip or popping cork, a paddle tail on a light jighead, or a topwater walked at first light covers most situations. Keep the drag light because their mouths tear easily.
Common snook
Snook ambush bait around mangrove shorelines, bridge and dock lights, jetties and the mouths of passes and inlets, generally in 2 to 15 feet of water. Fish moving water, especially the outgoing tide, with a live pilchard, pinfish or shrimp, or a jerkbait or soft plastic swum past the structure. In summer they spawn along beaches and inlets, and in winter they crowd into rivers, canals and deep backcountry creeks where the water stays warmer.
Crevalle jack
Jacks roam in schools through inlets, passes, bays, river mouths and along beaches, pushing bait to the surface, and big fish also hold on nearshore reefs and wrecks. Watch for birds and surface blowups, then cast a popper, a spoon or a bucktail into the school and retrieve fast. Bring heavy spinning tackle, because a jack over 15 pounds runs hard and fights for a long time.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Norris Cut

    Channel · 1.9 mi

    75
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 75
    • Crevalle jack 75
    • Atlantic tarpon 72

    4 kt ENEL 8:39 PM · 1.1 ftH 2:41 AM · 2.3 ft

  • Fishermans Channel

    Channel · 2.3 mi

    74
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 74
    • Crevalle jack 73
    • Atlantic tarpon 71

    4 kt ENEL 9:49 PM · 1.1 ftH 3:15 AM · 2.1 ft

  • Miami South Cannel

    Channel · 2.4 mi

    73
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 73
    • Crevalle jack 71
    • Atlantic tarpon 70

    4 kt ENEL 9:49 PM · 1.1 ftH 3:15 AM · 2.1 ft

  • West Point

    Cape · 1.9 mi

    68
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 68
    • Crevalle jack 67
    • Atlantic tarpon 63

    4 kt ENEL 10:10 PM · 1.1 ftH 3:25 AM · 2.0 ft

Scores and forecasts are for planning only and can be wrong. Conditions on the water change fast; check the marine forecast before you go. Regulations change during the season, so confirm limits and closures with FWC before you keep a fish.