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Red snapperRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Common snook66
- Atlantic croaker58
- Red drum58
- Gray snapper56
- Atlantic tarpon51
- Black drum49
- Spanish mackerel49
- Crevalle jack47
- Southern flounder46
- Florida pompano44
- Permit44
- Red snapper44
- Gag grouper43
- Spotted seatrout42
- Gray triggerfish41
- Red grouper40
- King mackerel38
- Cobia37
- Greater amberjack35
- Sheepshead34
Best score today · 8 AM · Red snapper
- Now
- 442 AM EDT
- Best window
- 7-10 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing1.4 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Foster 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
Sunday, Sep 27 · 5 AM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
81Tide: EbbingCurrent: 1.5 kn ebbWind & pressure
ECMWF
93Wind: 11 kt NEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
60Water temp: 86°F, warmLight: NightSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 1.0 ftSeason & habitat · Red snapper
Species seasonality
43Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: Out of range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Red snapper(private recreational)
Retention open- Daily limit
- 2 per day (10 snapper combined)
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 16 in, total length
- Season
- Sep 1 to Oct 4, 2026
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Changes
- Closed from Oct 5
- Other
- Applies to private recreational vessels in Florida Gulf state and federal waters, and to for-hire vessels without a federal permit in Gulf state waters only. Charter captain and crew bag limit is zero. Private-vessel anglers need the State Reef Fish Angler designation. Counts toward the 10-snapper aggregate per person per day. Reef fish gear rules apply. Land with head and fins intact. FWC sets this 2026 Gulf private recreational season for both Gulf state waters and Gulf federal waters off Florida.
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 snapper Retention open (5 per day (10 snapper 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))
- 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 Red snapper is best here
Shoulder season for Red snapper · 31 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Foster Bay
- Depth
- 1-6 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonRed 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 Foster Bay
Foster Bay is a bay in Charlotte Harbor and Pine Island Sound, Florida. Depth is 1-6 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, black drum, Spanish mackerel and crevalle jack. 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
- Red snapper
- Red snapper school over rigs, wrecks, artificial reefs and natural ledges, mostly in 60 to 250 feet. Anchor or drift over the structure, chum, and drop cut or live cigar minnows, sardines or squid on circle hooks, using as little weight as the current allows. Federal rules require circle hooks with natural bait in the Gulf and a descending device or venting tool on board.
- 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
- Safety Harbor67
Bay · 1.5 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 67
- Atlantic croaker 60
- Gray snapper 58
13 kt SEL 4:43 AM · 1.2 ftH 10:51 AM · 2.2 ft
- South Banks64
Bar · 1.1 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 64
- Atlantic croaker 60
- Florida pompano 55
13 kt SEL 5:11 AM · 1.3 ftH 11:34 AM · 2.3 ft
- Foster Point62
Cape · 0.4 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 62
- Red drum 54
- Atlantic croaker 53
13 kt SEL 4:43 AM · 1.2 ftH 10:51 AM · 2.2 ft
- Captiva Shoal62
Bar · 2.2 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 62
- Red drum 54
- Atlantic croaker 53
13 kt SEL 4:43 AM · 1.2 ftH 10:51 AM · 2.2 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.