Waterlands

UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN

Atlantic croakerRetention open

Channel · Florida

Short Cutoff

26.49°N · 82.09°W · Channel · Charlotte Harbor and Pine Island Sound

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 8 AM · Atlantic croaker

80/100Great
Now
7710 AM EDT
Best window
10 AM-1 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing1.5 ft ▼

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

Notify me when Short Cutoff scores 75+

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

Sign in to set an alert

14-day forecast

Best days to fish

Best: Sat · 83

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 10 AM · now

Time10ANOW
Score77Great
Tide1.5 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb0.7 kn · toward E
Wind5 kn NEgusts 13 · building
Sea stateLight chop0.9 ft · 3 s
Air temp80°Warm
WeatherMostly cloudy64% cloud
Water85°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Atlantic croaker

Retention open
Daily limit
Not published
Possession
Not published
Size
Not published
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
100 pounds per person per day. No minimum size. Open year-round.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Spot and Atlantic croaker, read Sep 13

Other species here

  • 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))
  • Sheepshead Retention open (8 per day)
  • Snook Check regulations
  • 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)
Always check with FWC ↗Fishing license ↗

Source: FWC · synced today

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Atlantic croaker is best here

Peak season for Atlantic croaker · 1 more week at peak

Atlantic croaker season by week of the year. Peak season for Atlantic croaker · 1 more week at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Atlantic croaker in Florida →

Spot profile

Short Cutoff

Depth
2-7 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Channel · Inner · Semi-exposedChannel · flat bottom
Season
Peak seasonAtlantic croaker

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 Short Cutoff

Short Cutoff is a channel in Charlotte Harbor and Pine Island Sound, Florida. Depth is 2-7 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads channel, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, common snook and gray snapper. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, common snook, gray snapper and red drum, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, permit, crevalle jack and black drum. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Gray snapper peak from June through September.

Tackle & technique

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.
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

View all on map →
  • Saint James Creek

    Bay · 1.9 mi

    78
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 78
    • Atlantic croaker 73
    • Common snook 71

    5 kt NEL 2:00 PM · 0.7 ftH 6:13 AM · 2.5 ft

  • Long Point

    Cape · 2.4 mi

    72
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 72
    • Gray snapper 71
    • Red drum 70

    8 kt NEL 3:15 PM · 0.5 ftH 6:35 AM · 2.1 ft

  • Saint James Point

    Cape · 0.9 mi

    71
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 71
    • Gray snapper 71
    • Red drum 71

    5 kt NEL 2:00 PM · 0.7 ftH 6:13 AM · 2.5 ft

  • Woodrings Point

    Cape · 2.5 mi

    71
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 71
    • Gray snapper 71
    • Red drum 71

    5 kt NEL 2:00 PM · 0.7 ftH 6:13 AM · 2.5 ft

Open in the tide map

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.