UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN
Mahi-mahiRetention openBay · Florida
The First National
26.05°N · 81.76°W · Bay · Coastal waters from Chokoloskee to Bonita Beach FL out 20 NM
Species here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Common snook72
- Atlantic croaker69
- Red drum68
- Atlantic tarpon65
- Gray snapper64
- Florida pompano63
- Spanish mackerel63
- Crevalle jack61
- Gag grouper58
- King mackerel57
- Southern flounder55
- Black drum54
- Gray triggerfish54
- Permit54
- Red grouper54
- Red snapper54
- Cobia52
- Greater amberjack49
- Yellowfin tuna49
- Spotted seatrout47
- Sailfish44
- Wahoo44
- Mahi-mahi43
- Sheepshead35
Best score today · 2 PM · Mahi-mahi
- Now
- 437 AM EDT
- Best window
- 1-6 PMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Flooding1.5 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when The First National 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 · 7 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
83Tide: FloodingCurrent: WeakWind & pressure
ECMWF
99Wind: 4 kt EPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
Open-Meteo Marine
49Water temp: 87°F, hotLight: DawnSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.9 ftSeason & habitat · Mahi-mahi
Species seasonality
62Season: ShoulderHabitat: Usable structureDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Mahi-mahi
Retention open- Daily limit
- 10 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Not published
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Captain and crew may not keep a bag limit. 10 per person or 60 per vessel, whichever is less. Hook and line or spearing. No minimum size.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Dolphinfish/Mahi-Mahi, 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)
- 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 Mahi-mahi is best here
Shoulder season for Mahi-mahi · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
The First National
- Depth
- 2-4 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · ProtectedBay · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonMahi-mahi
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 The First National
The First National is a bay in Coastal waters from Chokoloskee to Bonita Beach FL out 20 NM, Florida. Depth is 2-4 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 24 species here; the best right now are common snook, Atlantic croaker and red drum. It is peak season now for common snook, Atlantic croaker, red drum and gray snapper, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, Florida pompano, Spanish mackerel and crevalle jack. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Red drum peak from September through November.
Tackle & technique
- Mahi-mahi
- Mahi feed near the surface along weedlines, floating debris, buoys and current edges offshore, in water from the low 70s to the low 80s. Troll ballyhoo or small skirted lures along the weed, and when a school comes up behind the boat keep one hooked fish in the water while you pitch cut bait or jigs to the rest. Look for birds working over weed and flotsam.
- 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
- Little Marco Pass75
Channel · 2.4 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 75
- Atlantic croaker 73
- Gray snapper 69
4 kt EH 11:33 AM · 2.8 ftL 6:14 PM · 0.6 ft
- Rookery Channel73
Bay · 0.5 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 73
- Common snook 72
- Gray snapper 69
4 kt EH 11:33 AM · 2.8 ftL 6:14 PM · 0.6 ft
- Hall Bay73
Bay · 2.5 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 73
- Atlantic croaker 70
- Red drum 68
4 kt EH 11:33 AM · 2.8 ftL 6:14 PM · 0.6 ft
- Rookery Bay72
Bay · 1.4 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 72
- Atlantic croaker 69
- Red drum 68
4 kt EH 11:33 AM · 2.8 ftL 6:14 PM · 0.6 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.