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Southern flounderRetention openChannel · Florida
Little Marco Pass
26.01°N · 81.76°W · Channel · Coastal waters from Chokoloskee to Bonita Beach FL out 20 NM
Species here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker78
- Common snook73
- Florida pompano67
- Atlantic tarpon66
- Red drum65
- Gray snapper64
- Spanish mackerel63
- Black drum59
- Crevalle jack59
- Permit59
- Southern flounder59
- King mackerel54
- Gag grouper53
- Cobia52
- Spotted seatrout51
- Gray triggerfish50
- Red grouper50
- Red snapper50
- Yellowfin tuna50
- Wahoo45
- Greater amberjack44
- Mahi-mahi44
- Sailfish41
- Sheepshead35
Best score today · 9 AM · Southern flounder
- Now
- 5911 AM EDT
- Best window
- 7 PM-12 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Flooding2.8 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Little Marco 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 · 11 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
44Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.2 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 3 kt EPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
Open-Meteo Marine
75Water temp: 87°F, warmLight: OvercastSolunar: Major periodSeas: 0.9 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 yesterday
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
Little Marco Pass
- Depth
- 3-10 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Pass · Outer · ExposedPass · 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 Little Marco Pass
Little Marco Pass is a channel in Coastal waters from Chokoloskee to Bonita Beach FL out 20 NM, Florida. Depth is 3-10 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads pass, outer water and exposed.
Waterlands scores 24 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, common snook and Florida pompano. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, common snook, red drum and gray snapper, and shoulder season for Florida pompano, Atlantic tarpon, Spanish mackerel and black drum. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Florida pompano peak from March through May and from October through November.
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.
- 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.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Calhoun Channel78
Channel · 1.0 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 78
- Common snook 70
- Florida pompano 67
3 kt EL 6:14 PM · 0.6 ftH 12:35 AM · 2.4 ft
- Hurricane Pass77
Channel · 1.6 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 77
- Common snook 72
- Florida pompano 66
3 kt EL 6:11 PM · 0.4 ftH 12:33 AM · 2.5 ft
- Rookery Bay74
Bay · 1.5 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 74
- Common snook 70
- Florida pompano 67
3 kt EL 6:14 PM · 0.6 ftH 12:35 AM · 2.4 ft
- Hall Bay73
Bay · 1.6 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 73
- Common snook 69
- Florida pompano 66
3 kt EL 6:14 PM · 0.6 ftH 12:35 AM · 2.4 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.