UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN
Gray snapperRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Common snook70
- Atlantic croaker66
- Red drum63
- Gray snapper62
- Atlantic tarpon58
- Southern flounder56
- Black drum55
- Spanish mackerel54
- Permit52
- Crevalle jack51
- Florida pompano51
- Red snapper48
- Spotted seatrout48
- Gag grouper47
- Gray triggerfish45
- Red grouper44
- Cobia43
- King mackerel42
- Greater amberjack39
- Sheepshead35
Best score today · 12 AM · Gray snapper
- Now
- 624 AM EDT
- Best window
- 3-8 PMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing1.4 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Alligator Bay 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 · rolling from now
Conditions · 4 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
42Tide: EbbingCurrent: WeakWind & pressure
ECMWF
95Wind: 3 kt ESEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
81Water temp: 84°F, primeLight: NightSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.9 ftSeason & habitat · Gray snapper
Species seasonality
80Season: PeakHabitat: Structure unmappedDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
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
- Black drum Retention open (5 per day)
- Bluefish Retention open (10 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 Retention open (2 per day (4 Gulf grouper combined))
- Gray triggerfish Retention open (1 per day)
- Greater amberjack Retention open (1 per day)
- King mackerel Retention open (3 per day)
- Mahi-mahi Retention open (10 per day)
- Permit Retention open (2 per day)
- Red drum Retention open (1 per day)
- Red grouper Retention open (2 per day (4 Gulf grouper combined))
- Red snapper Retention open (2 per day (10 snapper combined))
- Sailfish Retention open (1 per day (1 billfish combined))
- Sheepshead Retention open (8 per day)
- Snook Catch & release (No retention)
- Southern flounder Retention open (5 per day)
- Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
- Spot Retention open
- 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)
Source: FWC · synced yesterday
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Gray snapper is best here
Peak season for Gray snapper · 1 more week at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Alligator Bay
- Depth
- 3-6 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
- Season
- Peak 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 Alligator Bay
Alligator Bay is a bay in Charlotte Harbor and Pine Island Sound, Florida. Depth is 3-6 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are common snook, Atlantic croaker and red drum. It is peak season now for common snook, Atlantic croaker, red drum and gray snapper, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, southern flounder, black drum and Spanish mackerel. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Red drum peak from September through November.
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.
- Atlantic croaker
- Croaker feed on mud and sand bottom along channel edges, oyster bars, piers and deeper holes in bays and sounds, mostly in 5 to 30 feet of water. A two-hook bottom rig with small hooks and shrimp, bloodworm or squid catches them from piers, the surf and small boats. Fish the hours around high tide and into the evening.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Lewis Creek71
Channel · 0.5 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 71
- Atlantic croaker 69
- Red drum 68
3 kt ESEL 7:15 AM · 1.1 ftH 1:13 PM · 2.1 ft
- Little Alligator Creek71
Gut · 1.6 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 71
- Atlantic croaker 69
- Red drum 68
3 kt ESEL 7:15 AM · 1.1 ftH 1:13 PM · 2.1 ft
- Muddy Bay68
Bay · 0.6 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 68
- Atlantic croaker 66
- Common snook 65
3 kt ESEL 7:15 AM · 1.1 ftH 1:13 PM · 2.1 ft
- Grassy Point65
Cape · 0.9 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 65
- Common snook 64
- Red drum 58
3 kt ESEL 7:52 AM · 1.2 ftH 1:35 PM · 2.1 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.