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Spanish mackerelRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
Best score today · 7 AM · Spanish mackerel
- Now
- 5811 AM EST
- Best window
- 5-10 PMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Flooding0.7 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Cape Florida Anchorage scores 75+
Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.
14-day forecast
Best days to fish
24-hour conditions
Monday, Nov 16 · 11 AM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
91Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.6 kn floodWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 7 kt NWPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
52Water temp: 81°F, primeLight: Bright sunSolunar: Between periodsSeason & habitat · Spanish mackerel
Species seasonality
65Season: ShoulderHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Atlantic state waters (Nassau through Miami-Dade counties)
Spanish mackerel
Retention open- Daily limit
- 15 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 12 in, fork length
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Beach or haul seine, cast net, hook and line, or spear. Open year-round.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Spanish Mackerel, 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))
- Sheepshead Retention open (8 per day)
- Snook Retention open (1 per day)
- Southern flounder Closed (No retention)
- Spot Retention open (50 per day)
- Spotted seatrout Retention open (3 per day)
- Summer flounder Closed (No retention)
- Tarpon Catch & release (No retention)
- Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)
Source: FWC · synced yesterday
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Spanish mackerel is best here
Shoulder season for Spanish mackerel · 3 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Cape Florida Anchorage
- Depth
- 15-20 ftSlope
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · slope
- Season
- Shoulder seasonSpanish mackerel
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 Cape Florida Anchorage
Cape Florida Anchorage is a channel in Biscayne Bay, Florida. Depth is 15-20 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads bay, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 19 species here; the best right now are common snook, crevalle jack and king mackerel. It is peak season now for common snook, crevalle jack, king mackerel and red drum, and shoulder season for Florida pompano, black drum, Spanish mackerel and Atlantic tarpon. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through November. Crevalle jack peak from April through May and from September through November. King mackerel peak from November through March.
Tackle & technique
- Spanish mackerel
- Spanish mackerel school along beaches and around inlets, jetties, piers and bridge-tunnel structures, and along tide rips in 5 to 40 feet of water once the water climbs above about 68 degrees F. Troll small spoons or cast metal jigs and retrieve fast, or look for birds diving on bait and cast into the school. FWC calls for a 30 to 60 pound monofilament leader because their teeth cut light line.
- 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
- Cape Florida Channel68
Channel · 0.7 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 68
- Crevalle jack 66
- King mackerel 60
9 kt ESEH 4:02 PM · 2.5 ftL 10:27 PM · 0.5 ft
- Biscayne Channel68
Channel · 0.9 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 68
- Crevalle jack 66
- King mackerel 60
9 kt ESEH 4:02 PM · 2.5 ftL 10:27 PM · 0.5 ft
- Cape Florida63
Cape · 0.2 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 63
- Crevalle jack 63
- Spanish mackerel 62
9 kt ESEH 4:02 PM · 2.5 ftL 10:27 PM · 0.5 ft
- South Basin57
Bay · 1.3 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 57
- Crevalle jack 56
- King mackerel 50
9 kt ESEH 4:35 PM · 2.4 ftL 11:21 PM · 0.5 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.