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Spotted seatroutRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
Best score today · 6 AM · Spotted seatrout
- Now
- 307 AM EST
- Best window
- 7-9 AMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing1.1 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Main Channel 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
Thursday, Nov 12 · 8 AM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
100Tide: FloodingCurrent: 1.1 kn floodWind & pressure
ECMWF
66Wind: 7 kt ENEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
55Water temp: 83°F, warmLight: DawnSolunar: Between periodsSeason & habitat · Spotted seatrout
Species seasonality
67Season: ShoulderHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Atlantic state waters (Nassau through Miami-Dade counties)
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 Closed (No retention)
- Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
- Spot Retention open (50 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 Spotted seatrout is best here
Shoulder season for Spotted seatrout · 4 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Main Channel
- Depth
- 15-40 ftSlope
- Structure
- Channel · Inner · ProtectedChannel · 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 Main Channel
Main Channel is a channel in Biscayne Bay, Florida. Depth is 15-40 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads channel, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 19 species here; the best right now are crevalle jack, common snook and red drum. It is peak season now for crevalle jack, common snook, red drum and king mackerel, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, gray snapper, black drum and Spanish mackerel. Crevalle jack peak from April through May and from September through November. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through November. Red drum peak from October through February.
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.
- 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.
- 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
- Fishermans Channel76
Channel · 0.7 mi
Top: Crevalle jackPeak season- Crevalle jack 76
- Common snook 75
- Red drum 73
7 kt EL 9:20 AM · 0.6 ftH 3:24 PM · 2.6 ft
- Norris Cut74
Channel · 1.7 mi
Top: Crevalle jackPeak season- Crevalle jack 74
- Common snook 73
- Red drum 72
7 kt EL 8:10 AM · 0.6 ftH 2:50 PM · 2.8 ft
- Meloy Channel72
Channel · 1.4 mi
Top: Crevalle jackPeak season- Crevalle jack 72
- Common snook 71
- Red drum 70
7 kt EL 8:02 AM · 0.7 ftH 2:27 PM · 3.0 ft
- Brickell Point70
Cape · 1.7 mi
Top: Crevalle jackPeak season- Crevalle jack 70
- Common snook 69
- King mackerel 68
7 kt EL 8:55 AM · 0.5 ftH 3:09 PM · 2.7 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.