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SheepsheadRetention openChannel · Florida
Pelican Pass
26.69°N · 82.24°W · Channel · Charlotte Harbor and Pine Island Sound
Species here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Common snook81
- Gray snapper73
- Red drum73
- Atlantic croaker71
- Spanish mackerel71
- Atlantic tarpon69
- Crevalle jack69
- Permit68
- Southern flounder67
- King mackerel62
- Cobia61
- Black drum60
- Spotted seatrout58
- Gag grouper55
- Greater amberjack55
- Florida pompano54
- Gray triggerfish54
- Red grouper53
- Red snapper53
- Sheepshead35
Best score today · 9 AM · Sheepshead
- Now
- 353 PM EDT
- Best window
- 9 PM-12 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing1.0 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Pelican Pass 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 · 3 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
85Tide: EbbingCurrent: 1.4 kn ebbWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 4 kt ENEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
50Water temp: 84°F, warmLight: Partly cloudySolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.7 ftSeason & habitat · Sheepshead
Species seasonality
42Off season · capped at 35Season: Off seasonHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Sheepshead
Retention open- Daily limit
- 8 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 12 in, total length
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- State rules extend into federal waters. Special rules apply in Biscayne National Park. Hook and line, cast net, seine, spear or gig. No multiple hooks with natural bait. No snatching. Open year-round. A 50-fish vessel limit applies in March and April.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Sheepshead, 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))
- Red snapper Retention open (2 per day (10 snapper combined))
- Sailfish Retention open (1 per day (1 billfish combined))
- 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 today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Sheepshead is best here
Out of season for Sheepshead · shoulder season starts in 2 weeks
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Pelican Pass
- Depth
- 5-10 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Pass · Inner · Semi-exposedPass · flat bottom
- Season
- Off seasonSheepshead
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 Pelican Pass
Pelican Pass is a channel in Charlotte Harbor and Pine Island Sound, Florida. Depth is 5-10 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads pass, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are common snook, gray snapper and red drum. It is peak season now for common snook, gray snapper, red drum and Atlantic croaker, and shoulder season for Spanish mackerel, Atlantic tarpon, crevalle jack and permit. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Gray snapper peak from June through September. Red drum peak from September through November.
Tackle & technique
- Sheepshead
- Sheepshead graze barnacles and crabs off pilings, jetty rocks, bridge supports, oyster bars and nearshore reefs, from a few feet deep out to about 50 feet. Drop a fiddler crab, sand flea or piece of shrimp on a small, strong hook straight down next to the structure with just enough weight to hold bottom. The bite is a light tap, so keep the line tight and set the hook fast.
- 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.
- 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.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Pelican Bay78
Bay · 0.7 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 78
- Gray snapper 72
- Red drum 72
4 kt ENEL 5:53 PM · 0.4 ftH 12:29 AM · 1.4 ft
- Boca Grande76
Channel · 1.6 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 76
- Gray snapper 73
- Red drum 73
4 kt ENEL 5:53 PM · 0.4 ftH 12:29 AM · 1.4 ft
- Quarantine Rocks75
Bar · 0.9 mi
Top: Gray snapperPeak season- Gray snapper 75
- Common snook 73
- Permit 69
4 kt ENEL 5:53 PM · 0.4 ftH 12:29 AM · 1.4 ft
- Primo Point73
Cape · 1.4 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 73
- Gray snapper 68
- Red drum 68
4 kt ENEL 5:53 PM · 0.4 ftH 12:29 AM · 1.4 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.