Waterlands

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King mackerelRetention open

Bay · Florida

East Marco Bay

25.96°N · 81.70°W · Bay · Coastal waters from Chokoloskee to Bonita Beach FL out 20 NM

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 9 AM · King mackerel

76/100Great
Now
553 PM EDT
Best window
3-7 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing2.1 ft ▼

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

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14-day forecast

Best days to fish

Best: Wed · 80

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 3 PM · now

Time3PNOW
Score55Good
Tide2.1 ft ▼Ebbing
Current0.2 knmodeled · toward ENE
Wind1 kn Sgusts 12 · building
Sea stateLight chop0.7 ft · 3 s
Air temp81°Warm
WeatherOvercast93% chance of rain
Water87°FModel

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

King mackerel

Retention open
Daily limit
3 per day
Possession
Not published
Size
Minimum 24 in, fork length
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
Hook and line and spearing only. Open year-round.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: King Mackerel, 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)
  • 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)
Always check with FWC ↗Fishing license ↗

Source: FWC · synced today

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When King mackerel is best here

Shoulder season for King mackerel · 1 more week at shoulder

King mackerel season by week of the year. Shoulder season for King mackerel · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

King mackerel in Florida →

Spot profile

East Marco Bay

Depth
3-8 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bay · Outer · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonKing mackerel

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 East Marco Bay

East Marco Bay is a bay in Coastal waters from Chokoloskee to Bonita Beach FL out 20 NM, Florida. Depth is 3-8 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, outer water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 24 species here; the best right now are common snook, Atlantic croaker and Atlantic tarpon. It is peak season now for common snook, Atlantic croaker, red drum and gray snapper, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, Spanish mackerel, crevalle jack and gag grouper. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Atlantic tarpon peak from May through July.

Tackle & technique

King mackerel
Kings roam from beaches and pier ends out to reefs, wrecks and ledges in 40 to 200 feet, usually feeding in the upper half of the water column. Slow-troll live menhaden, blue runners or cigar minnows on a light wire stinger rig, or pull spoons and ribbonfish past bait schools. Look for clean green water above 68 F with bait and birds on it.
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

View all on map →
  • Bear Point

    Cape · 0.3 mi

    70
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 70
    • Atlantic croaker 67
    • Red drum 65

    1 kt SL 6:11 PM · 0.4 ftH 12:33 AM · 2.5 ft

  • Railroad Shoals

    Bar · 0.3 mi

    70
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 70
    • Atlantic croaker 67
    • Red drum 65

    1 kt SL 6:11 PM · 0.4 ftH 12:33 AM · 2.5 ft

  • Sanctuary Sound

    Bay · 0.8 mi

    70
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 70
    • Atlantic croaker 67
    • Red drum 65

    1 kt SL 7:19 PM · 0.5 ftH 1:35 AM · 2.4 ft

  • Three Island Cove

    Bay · 0.9 mi

    70
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 70
    • Red drum 68
    • Atlantic croaker 67

    1 kt SL 7:19 PM · 0.5 ftH 1:35 AM · 2.4 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.