Waterlands

UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN

Red grouperRetention open

Channel · Florida

Deering Channel

25.74°N · 80.21°W · Channel · Biscayne Bay

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 7 AM · Red grouper

77/100Great
Now
541 PM EDT
Best window
6-9 PMDusk
Tide now
Flooding1.5 ft ▲

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

Notify me when Deering Channel scores 75+

Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.

Sign in to set an alert

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 1 PM · now

Time1PNOW
Score54Good
Tide1.5 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentFlood0.2 kn · toward W
Wind1 kn ESEgusts 12 · building
Sea stateLight chop1.2 ft · 5 s
Air temp81°Warm
WeatherOvercast90% chance of rain
Water87°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Atlantic state waters (Nassau through Miami-Dade counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Red grouper

Retention open
Daily limit
3 per day (3 Atlantic grouper and tilefish combined)
Possession
Not published
Size
Minimum 20 in, total length
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Changes
Closed from Jan 1
Other
Private-vessel anglers need the State Reef Fish Angler designation. Special rules apply in Biscayne National Park. No more than 3 grouper and tilefish combined per person per day. Reef fish gear rules apply. Land with head and fins intact. Open May 1 through December 31. Closed January 1 through April 30.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Groupers, 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 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 Red grouper is best here

Shoulder season for Red grouper · 27 more weeks at shoulder

Red grouper season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Red grouper · 27 more weeks at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Red grouper in Florida

Spot profile

Deering Channel

Depth
6-8 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Channel · Inner · Semi-exposedChannel · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonRed grouper

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 Deering Channel

Deering Channel is a channel in Biscayne Bay, Florida. Depth is 6-8 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads channel, inner water and semi-exposed.

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

Tackle & technique

Red grouper
Red grouper live on low limestone ledges and potholed live bottom across the West Florida Shelf, mostly in 60 to 250 feet. Drift to find hard bottom, then anchor and fish live pinfish, grunts or squid on the bottom with stout conventional tackle. Reel hard right after the bite, because they dive into holes, and use a descending device on fish released from deep water.
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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Dinner Key Channel

    Channel · 1.6 mi

    72
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 72
    • Crevalle jack 70
    • Atlantic tarpon 70

    1 kt ESEH 3:33 PM · 2.0 ftL 10:27 PM · 1.1 ft

  • Miami South Cannel

    Channel · 1.9 mi

    72
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 72
    • Crevalle jack 70
    • Atlantic tarpon 70

    1 kt ESEH 3:13 PM · 2.2 ftL 9:49 PM · 1.1 ft

  • Four-Way Channel

    Channel · 2.4 mi

    72
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 72
    • Crevalle jack 70
    • Atlantic tarpon 70

    1 kt ESEH 3:33 PM · 2.0 ftL 10:27 PM · 1.1 ft

  • Brickell Point

    Cape · 2.4 mi

    67
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 67
    • Crevalle jack 65
    • Atlantic tarpon 62

    1 kt ESEH 3:07 PM · 2.3 ftL 9:16 PM · 1.0 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.