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Southern flounderRetention openChannel · Florida
Coon Key Pass
25.91°N · 81.64°W · Channel · Coastal waters from Chokoloskee to Bonita Beach FL out 20 NM
Species here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Common snook79
- Atlantic croaker75
- Gray snapper71
- Atlantic tarpon70
- Red drum70
- Spanish mackerel69
- Crevalle jack67
- Permit65
- Southern flounder64
- Black drum63
- Gag grouper59
- King mackerel59
- Cobia56
- Gray triggerfish56
- Red grouper56
- Red snapper56
- Spotted seatrout56
- Florida pompano53
- Greater amberjack50
- Yellowfin tuna49
- Mahi-mahi44
- Sailfish43
- Wahoo42
- Sheepshead35
Best score today · 9 AM · Southern flounder
- Now
- 645 PM EDT
- Best window
- 8 PM-12 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing1.2 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Coon Key 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 · 5 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
74Tide: EbbingCurrent: WeakWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 3 kt NEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
67Water temp: 85°F, warmLight: Late afternoonSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.5 ftSeason & habitat · Southern flounder
Species seasonality
75Season: ShoulderHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Southern flounder
Retention open- Daily limit
- 5 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 14 in, total length
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Changes
- Closed from Oct 15
- Other
- Same rules for Gulf, southern, summer and fringed flounder, in state and federal waters. Special rules apply in Biscayne National Park. Spears, gigs, hook and line, seine or cast net. No multiple hooks with natural bait. No snatching. Closed every October 15 through November 30.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Flounder, 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)
- Snook Catch & release (No retention)
- 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 Southern flounder is best here
Shoulder season for Southern flounder · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Coon Key Pass
- Depth
- Up to 15 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Pass · Inner · ProtectedPass · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonSouthern flounder
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 Coon Key Pass
Coon Key Pass is a channel in Coastal waters from Chokoloskee to Bonita Beach FL out 20 NM, Florida. Depth is up to 15 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads pass, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 24 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 Atlantic tarpon, Spanish mackerel, crevalle jack and permit. 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
- Southern flounder
- Flounder lie half buried on soft bottom along marsh edges, creek mouths, dock pilings and the sandy sides of passes, usually in 1 to 15 feet of water. Drag a mud minnow or finger mullet on a Carolina rig, or bump a soft plastic slowly along the bottom, and give the fish a few seconds before setting the hook. In fall the adults stack up at passes and jetties on their way offshore, and many anglers gig them at night in knee-deep water.
- 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
- Goodland Bay77
Bay · 1.2 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 77
- Atlantic croaker 71
- Red drum 70
3 kt NEL 6:58 PM · 0.5 ftH 1:09 AM · 3.6 ft
- Blue Hill Creek77
Bay · 1.3 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 77
- Red drum 74
- Atlantic croaker 72
3 kt NEL 6:58 PM · 0.5 ftH 1:09 AM · 3.6 ft
- Southwest Gate77
Channel · 1.4 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 77
- Atlantic croaker 75
- Gray snapper 71
4 kt NL 6:58 PM · 0.5 ftH 1:09 AM · 3.6 ft
- Sugar Bay76
Bay · 0.8 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 76
- Red drum 73
- Atlantic croaker 71
3 kt NEL 6:58 PM · 0.5 ftH 1:09 AM · 3.6 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.