Waterlands

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Gray snapperRetention open

Bay · Florida

Biscayne Bay

25.58°N · 80.23°W · Bay · Biscayne Bay

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Best score today · 8 AM · Gray snapper

78/100Great
Now
555 AM EDT
Best window
7-9 AMEbb 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 27 · 7 AM

Time7A
Score68Great
Tide1.2 ft ▲Flooding
Current0.5 knmodeled · toward SW
Wind6 kn Ngusts 11 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.6 ft · 10 s
Air temp73°Warm
WeatherPartly cloudy25% cloud
Water86°FModel

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Atlantic state waters (Nassau through Miami-Dade counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Gray snapper

Retention open
Daily limit
5 per day (10 snapper combined)
Possession
Not published
Size
Minimum 10 in, total length
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
Open year-round in Gulf and Atlantic state waters. Special rules apply in Biscayne National Park. Counts toward the 10-snapper aggregate per person per day. Reef fish gear rules apply. Land with head and fins intact. Federal waters have a 12-inch minimum and a 10-fish bag.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Snappers, 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 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 (1 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)
  • Spotted seatrout Retention open (3 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 Gray snapper is best here

Shoulder season for Gray snapper · 31 more weeks at shoulder

Gray snapper season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Gray snapper · 31 more weeks at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Gray snapper in Florida

Spot profile

Biscayne Bay

Depth
About 10 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonGray snapper

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 Biscayne Bay

Biscayne Bay is a bay in Biscayne Bay, Florida. Depth is about 10 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, 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, red drum, gray snapper 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

Gray snapper
Mangrove snapper hold tight to mangrove roots, bridge pilings, jetties and reef ledges, from a few feet deep inshore to 150 feet offshore. Chum to pull them out of cover, then freeline or lightly weight a live shrimp or pilchard on fluorocarbon leader, since they shy away from heavy line in clear water. The bite improves at dusk and after dark.
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

  • Safety Valve

    Gut · 4.3 mi

    67
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 67
    • Atlantic tarpon 63
    • Crevalle jack 60

    2 kt ESEL 10:21 AM · 0.6 ftH 4:09 PM · 1.9 ft

  • Deering Bay Channel

    Channel · 4.7 mi

    64
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 64
    • Atlantic tarpon 59
    • Crevalle jack 56

    2 kt ENEL 10:51 AM · 0.7 ftH 4:52 PM · 2.1 ft

  • Black Ledge

    Bar · 1.2 mi

    60
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 60
    • Gray snapper 55
    • Atlantic tarpon 53

    2 kt ESEL 10:51 AM · 0.7 ftH 4:52 PM · 2.1 ft

  • Featherbed Bank

    Bar · 3.7 mi

    58
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 58
    • Atlantic tarpon 51
    • Red drum 50

    2 kt ESEL 11:31 AM · 0.5 ftH 5:04 PM · 1.5 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.