Waterlands

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SheepsheadRetention open

Channel · Florida

Caesar Creek

25.39°N · 80.23°W · Channel · Biscayne Bay

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Best score today · 7 AM · Sheepshead

77/100Great
Now
354 PM EDT
Best window
6-9 PMDusk
Tide now
Ebbing1.9 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 4 PM · now

Time4PNOW
Score35Fair
Tide1.9 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentSlack0.1 kn
Wind4 kn Egusts 11 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.3 ft · 5 s
Air temp83°Hot
WeatherMostly cloudy88% chance of rain
Water89°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Atlantic state waters (Nassau through Miami-Dade counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Sheepshead

Retention open
Daily limit
8 per day
Possession
Not published
Size
Minimum 12 in, total length
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
State rules extend into federal waters. Special rules apply in Biscayne National Park. Hook and line, cast net, seine, spear or gig. No multiple hooks with natural bait. No snatching. Open year-round. A 50-fish vessel limit applies in March and April.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Sheepshead, 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 (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))
  • 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 Sheepshead is best here

Out of season for Sheepshead · shoulder season starts in 7 weeks

Sheepshead season by week of the year. Out of season for Sheepshead · shoulder season starts in 7 weeks.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Sheepshead in Florida

Spot profile

Caesar Creek

Depth
4-15 ftSlope
Structure
Estuary · Outer · ExposedEstuary · slope
Season
Off seasonSheepshead

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 Caesar Creek

Caesar Creek is a channel in Biscayne Bay, Florida. Depth is 4-15 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads estuary, outer water and exposed.

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

Tackle & technique

Sheepshead
Sheepshead graze barnacles and crabs off pilings, jetty rocks, bridge supports, oyster bars and nearshore reefs, from a few feet deep out to about 50 feet. Drop a fiddler crab, sand flea or piece of shrimp on a small, strong hook straight down next to the structure with just enough weight to hold bottom. The bite is a light tap, so keep the line tight and set the hook fast.
Atlantic tarpon
Tarpon roll along beaches, in passes and channels, and under bridges from late spring through fall, and in South Florida some fish stay through winter in warm canals and backcountry rivers. Live crabs, mullet or pinfish drifted through a pass on the outgoing tide, or a fly or soft plastic cast ahead of a rolling string of fish, are the main approaches. Use a long heavy leader, bow to the jumps, and keep big fish in the water for release.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Pacific Reef Channel

    Channel · 1.3 mi

    60
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 60
    • Atlantic tarpon 60
    • Crevalle jack 57

    4 kt EL 9:16 PM · 1.2 ftH 2:54 AM · 1.8 ft

  • Jones Point

    Cape · 1.3 mi

    58
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 58
    • Crevalle jack 55
    • Atlantic tarpon 55

    4 kt EH 4:47 PM · 1.5 ftL 11:59 PM · 0.7 ft

  • Hurricane Creek

    Bay · 0.3 mi

    57
    Top: Crevalle jackPeak season
    • Crevalle jack 57
    • Common snook 55
    • Atlantic tarpon 52

    4 kt EL 9:16 PM · 1.2 ftH 2:54 AM · 1.8 ft

  • Caesar Creek Bank

    Bar · 1.2 mi

    55
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 55
    • Atlantic tarpon 52
    • Crevalle jack 51

    4 kt EL 9:16 PM · 1.2 ftH 2:54 AM · 1.8 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.