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Common snookCatch & releaseSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all63
- Common snook63
- Atlantic croaker57
- Gray snapper56
- Spanish mackerel56
- Red drum55
- Florida pompano54
- Atlantic tarpon52
- Black drum52
- Gag grouper49
- Permit49
- Crevalle jack48
- Southern flounder47
- Gray triggerfish46
- Red grouper46
- Red snapper46
- King mackerel45
- Greater amberjack40
- Cobia39
- Spotted seatrout39
- Sheepshead35
Best score today · 10 PM · Common snook
- Now
- 636 PM EDT
- Best window
- 8 PM-12 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Low0.4 ft
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when South Banks 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 · 6 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
15Tide: Low slackCurrent: 0.2 kn ebbWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 6 kt SSEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
88Water temp: 85°F, warmLight: DuskSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.9 ftSeason & habitat · Common snook
Species seasonality
75Season: PeakHabitat: Poor fitDepth: In rangeRegulations: Catch & release
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Snook
Catch & release- Daily limit
- No retention
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Not published
- Season
- May 1 to Sep 30, 2026
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Changes
- Retention open from Oct 1
- Other
- Harvest is closed, but snook may be caught and released with a snook permit and a saltwater fishing license. Closed December 1 through the end of February and May 1 through September 30. Open March 1 through April 30 and October 1 through November 30. Regional rules apply in inland, state and adjacent federal waters.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Snook, 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))
- Sheepshead Retention open (8 per day)
- 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 Common snook is best here
Peak season for Common snook · 5 more weeks at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
South Banks
- Depth
- 1-10 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bar · Outer · ExposedBar · flat bottom
- Season
- Peak seasonCommon snook
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 South Banks
South Banks is a bar in Charlotte Harbor and Pine Island Sound, Florida. Depth is 1-10 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bar, outer water and exposed.
Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are common snook, Atlantic croaker and gray snapper. It is peak season now for common snook, Atlantic croaker, gray snapper and red drum, and shoulder season for Spanish mackerel, Florida pompano, Atlantic tarpon and black drum. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Gray snapper peak from June through September.
Tackle & technique
- 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.
- 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
- Chadwick Bayou69
Bay · 2.2 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 69
- Red drum 68
- Atlantic croaker 67
6 kt SSEL 6:44 PM · 0.4 ftH 1:06 AM · 1.8 ft
- Foster Bay67
Bay · 1.1 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 67
- Atlantic croaker 63
- Gray snapper 61
6 kt SSEH 12:05 AM · 1.5 ftL 4:43 AM · 1.2 ft
- Pine Island Sound67
Bay · 2.5 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 67
- Atlantic croaker 62
- Gray snapper 60
6 kt SSEH 12:57 AM · 1.8 ftL 5:11 AM · 1.3 ft
- Foster Point63
Cape · 1.5 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 63
- Atlantic croaker 57
- Gray snapper 57
6 kt SSEH 12:05 AM · 1.5 ftL 4:43 AM · 1.2 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.