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SheepsheadRetention openBay · Florida
Sheepshead Bayou
29.68°N · 85.09°W · Bay · Coastal Waters from Mexico Beach to Apalachicola out 20 NM
Species here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Red drum65
- Atlantic croaker60
- Southern flounder58
- Atlantic tarpon57
- Gray snapper55
- Spanish mackerel55
- Permit54
- Black drum53
- Crevalle jack52
- Florida pompano51
- Gag grouper50
- Spotted seatrout49
- King mackerel48
- Yellowfin tuna47
- Gray triggerfish46
- Red grouper46
- Red snapper46
- Sailfish45
- Cobia43
- Wahoo42
- Mahi-mahi41
- Greater amberjack40
- Sheepshead35
Best score today · 11 PM · Sheepshead
- Now
- 357 AM EDT
- Best window
- 10 PM-12 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing1.4 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Sheepshead Bayou 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
49Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.2 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
96Wind: 6 kt NEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
54Water temp: 87°F, hotLight: DawnSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.5 ftSeason & habitat · Sheepshead
Species seasonality
26Off season · capped at 35Season: Off seasonHabitat: Poor fitDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Sheepshead
Retention open- Daily limit
- 8 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 12 in, total length
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- State rules extend into federal waters. Special rules apply in Biscayne National Park. Hook and line, cast net, seine, spear or gig. No multiple hooks with natural bait. No snatching. Open year-round. A 50-fish vessel limit applies in March and April.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Sheepshead, 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))
- Snook Retention open (1 per day)
- 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 Sheepshead is best here
Out of season for Sheepshead · shoulder season starts in 2 weeks
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Sheepshead Bayou
- Depth
- Under 1 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Estuary · Inner · ProtectedEstuary · flat bottom
- Season
- Off seasonSheepshead
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 Sheepshead Bayou
Sheepshead Bayou is a bay in Coastal Waters from Mexico Beach to Apalachicola out 20 NM, Florida. Depth is under 1 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads estuary, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 23 species here; the best right now are red drum, Atlantic croaker and southern flounder. It is peak season now for red drum, Atlantic croaker and gray snapper, and shoulder season for southern flounder, Atlantic tarpon, Spanish mackerel and permit. Red drum peak from September through November. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Southern flounder peak from October through November.
Tackle & technique
- Sheepshead
- Sheepshead graze barnacles and crabs off pilings, jetty rocks, bridge supports, oyster bars and nearshore reefs, from a few feet deep out to about 50 feet. Drop a fiddler crab, sand flea or piece of shrimp on a small, strong hook straight down next to the structure with just enough weight to hold bottom. The bite is a light tap, so keep the line tight and set the hook fast.
- 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.
- 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
- Saint Vincent Sound71
Bay · 2.5 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 71
- Florida pompano 63
- Red drum 61
6 kt NEL 10:47 AM · 1.4 ftH 3:04 PM · 1.6 ft
- Big Bayou70
Bay · 2.6 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 70
- Florida pompano 63
- Red drum 61
6 kt NEL 10:47 AM · 1.4 ftH 3:04 PM · 1.6 ft
- Paradise Point62
Cape · 0.7 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 62
- Atlantic croaker 61
- Atlantic tarpon 58
6 kt NEL 8:15 AM · 1.3 ftH 1:29 PM · 1.6 ft
- Saint Vincent Point62
Cape · 0.8 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 62
- Atlantic croaker 61
- Atlantic tarpon 58
6 kt NEL 8:15 AM · 1.3 ftH 1:29 PM · 1.6 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.