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Black drumRetention openBay · Florida
Shell Point Cove
29.68°N · 84.80°W · Bay · Coastal Waters From Ochlockonee River to Apalachicola FL out to 20 Nm
Species here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Florida pompano65
- Spanish mackerel58
- Red drum56
- King mackerel55
- Red snapper48
- Black drum47
- Gray snapper45
- Gray triggerfish45
- Red grouper45
- Wahoo45
- Sheepshead44
- Atlantic croaker35
- Atlantic tarpon35
- Cobia35
- Crevalle jack35
- Mahi-mahi35
- Sailfish35
- Yellowfin tuna35
- Spotted seatrout30
- Permit26
- Gag grouper20
- Greater amberjack20
- Southern flounder20
Best score today · 7 AM · Black drum
- Now
- 471 AM EST
- Best window
- 6-9 AMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Flooding1.9 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Shell Point Cove 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
Friday, Nov 6 · 8 AM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
98Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.7 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 4 kt NNWPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
88Water temp: 75°F, primeLight: DawnSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.3 ftSeason & habitat · Black drum
Species seasonality
48Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: In range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Black drum
Retention open- Daily limit
- 5 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Slot 14 to 24 in, total length. One fish over 24 inches allowed, counted in the bag limit.
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- 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.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Black Drum, read Sep 13
Other species here
- Atlantic croaker Retention open
- 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 Closed (No retention)
- Gray snapper Retention open (5 per day (10 snapper combined))
- Gray triggerfish Retention open (1 per day)
- Greater amberjack Closed (No retention)
- 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 Retention open (1 per day)
- Southern flounder Closed (No retention)
- Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
- Spot Retention open
- Spotted seatrout Retention open (3 per day)
- Summer flounder Closed (No retention)
- Tarpon Catch & release (No retention)
- Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)
Source: FWC · synced yesterday
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Black drum is best here
Shoulder season for Black drum · 13 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Shell Point Cove
- Depth
- 1-5 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Outer · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonBlack drum
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 Shell Point Cove
Shell Point Cove is a bay in Coastal Waters From Ochlockonee River to Apalachicola FL out to 20 Nm, Florida. Depth is 1-5 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, outer water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 23 species here; the best right now are Florida pompano, Spanish mackerel and red drum. It is peak season now for Florida pompano, Spanish mackerel, red drum and spotted seatrout, and shoulder season for king mackerel, red snapper, black drum and gray snapper. Florida pompano peak from March through May and from October through November. Spanish mackerel peak from April through May and from October through November. Red drum peak from September through November.
Tackle & technique
- Black drum
- Black drum root along the bottom around oyster reefs, bridge and pier pilings, channel edges and shallow mud flats. TPWD notes they rarely take artificials, so fish peeled shrimp, crab, clams or sand fleas on a bottom rig and let the fish load the rod before setting the hook. Big spawning schools gather near passes and bay mouths in late winter and spring, and in the Chesapeake and Delaware Bay the large fish show up on the shoals from April into June.
- Florida pompano
- Pompano feed on sand fleas and coquina clams in the trough between the beach and the first sandbar, and around the sandy edges of passes, inlets and bridges. Surf anglers fish a two-hook pompano rig with sand fleas, clams or shrimp, while boat and bridge anglers bounce small jigs along the bottom. The runs follow water temperature, heading north in spring and south in fall as the water cools.
- Spanish mackerel
- Spanish mackerel school along beaches and around inlets, jetties, piers and bridge-tunnel structures, and along tide rips in 5 to 40 feet of water once the water climbs above about 68 degrees F. Troll small spoons or cast metal jigs and retrieve fast, or look for birds diving on bait and cast into the school. FWC calls for a 30 to 60 pound monofilament leader because their teeth cut light line.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Shell Point65
Cape · 0.4 mi
Top: Florida pompanoPeak season- Florida pompano 65
- Spanish mackerel 58
- King mackerel 56
11 kt ENEH 5:28 AM · 2.5 ftL 2:18 PM · 0.1 ft
- Rattlesnake Cove65
Bay · 0.7 mi
Top: Florida pompanoPeak season- Florida pompano 65
- Spanish mackerel 58
- King mackerel 56
11 kt ENEH 5:28 AM · 2.5 ftL 2:18 PM · 0.1 ft
- East Cove65
Bay · 1.6 mi
Top: Florida pompanoPeak season- Florida pompano 65
- Spanish mackerel 57
- Red drum 56
11 kt ENEH 5:28 AM · 2.5 ftL 2:18 PM · 0.1 ft
- East Pelican Reef65
Bar · 1.7 mi
Top: Florida pompanoPeak season- Florida pompano 65
- King mackerel 59
- Spanish mackerel 58
11 kt ENEH 5:28 AM · 2.5 ftL 2:18 PM · 0.1 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.