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CobiaRetention openFlat · Florida
Starvation Flats
26.43°N · 81.88°W · Flat · Charlotte Harbor and Pine Island Sound
Species here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker66
- Red drum65
- Common snook64
- Atlantic tarpon57
- Southern flounder57
- Gray snapper55
- Permit55
- Black drum53
- Florida pompano52
- Spotted seatrout50
- Spanish mackerel48
- Red snapper44
- Gag grouper43
- Crevalle jack42
- Gray triggerfish42
- Red grouper41
- King mackerel39
- Greater amberjack36
- Cobia34
- Sheepshead31
Best score today · 9 AM · Cobia
- Now
- 342 AM EDT
- Best window
- 8-11 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing2.1 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Starvation Flats 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 · 2 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
24Tide: EbbingCurrent: SlackWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 4 kt ESEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
45Water temp: 84°F, warmLight: NightSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.8 ftSeason & habitat · Cobia
Species seasonality
40Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Cobia
Retention open- Daily limit
- 1 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 36 in, fork length
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- 1 per person or 2 per vessel, whichever is less. Spears, gigs, hook and line, seine or cast net.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Cobia, 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)
- 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 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 Cobia is best here
Shoulder season for Cobia · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Starvation Flats
- Depth
- 3-7 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Flat · Inner · Semi-exposedFlat · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonCobia
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 Starvation Flats
Starvation Flats is a flat in Charlotte Harbor and Pine Island Sound, Florida. Depth is 3-7 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads flat, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, red drum and common snook. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, red drum, common snook and gray snapper, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, southern flounder, permit and black drum. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Red drum peak from September through November. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October.
Tackle & technique
- Cobia
- Cobia cruise inlets, beaches, buoys, wrecks and the backs of rays in 5 to 100 feet of water. On calm, sunny days sight-cast bucktails or live eels to fish near the surface. Otherwise anchor up-current of structure, chum, and fish live eels, crabs or menhaden near the bottom.
- 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.
- Red drum
- Redfish feed on shallow grass flats, oyster bars and marsh edges, often in 1 to 4 feet of water, and drop into channels, deep holes and tidal creeks when the water turns very hot or cold. Work a live shrimp under a popping cork or a soft plastic along the grass line on a rising tide, then fish creek mouths and drains as the tide falls. Bull reds over 30 inches school in the surf, passes and jetties in late summer and fall, where cut mullet or a live crab on the bottom is the standard approach.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Estero Bay77
Bay · 1.8 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 77
- Atlantic croaker 73
- Gray snapper 70
4 kt ESEL 5:27 AM · 1.3 ftH 11:30 AM · 2.7 ft
- Ostego Bay76
Bay · 1.0 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 76
- Atlantic croaker 70
- Gray snapper 69
4 kt ESEL 5:27 AM · 1.3 ftH 11:30 AM · 2.7 ft
- Rocky Bay70
Bay · 1.7 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 70
- Common snook 70
- Red drum 62
4 kt ESEL 6:13 AM · 1.0 ftH 12:28 PM · 2.2 ft
- Needmore Point66
Cape · 1.2 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 66
- Common snook 65
- Red drum 57
4 kt ESEL 6:15 AM · 1.6 ftH 11:44 AM · 2.7 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.