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SheepsheadRetention openBay · Florida
Big Bayou
28.24°N · 82.75°W · Bay · Coastal waters from Tarpon Springs to Suwannee River FL out 20 NM
Species here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Common snook72
- Atlantic croaker71
- Red drum70
- Permit65
- Atlantic tarpon63
- Florida pompano63
- Gray snapper63
- Southern flounder63
- Spanish mackerel61
- Crevalle jack60
- Black drum59
- Gag grouper57
- King mackerel55
- Gray triggerfish54
- Red grouper53
- Red snapper53
- Spotted seatrout52
- Cobia51
- Greater amberjack48
- Yellowfin tuna48
- Sailfish44
- Mahi-mahi42
- Wahoo41
- Sheepshead35
Best score today · 8 PM · Sheepshead
- Now
- 3512 PM EDT
- Best window
- 7 PM-12 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing3.5 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Big 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 · 12 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
87Tide: EbbingCurrent: WeakWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 5 kt NEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
51Water temp: 86°F, warmLight: OvercastSolunar: Near a majorSeas: 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 (5 per day)
- Summer flounder Retention open (5 per day)
- Tarpon Catch & release (No retention)
- Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)
Source: FWC · synced today
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
Big Bayou
- Depth
- Up to 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 Big Bayou
Big Bayou is a bay in Coastal waters from Tarpon Springs to Suwannee River FL out 20 NM, Florida. Depth is up to 1 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads estuary, 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 permit, Atlantic tarpon, Florida pompano and southern flounder. 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
- 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.
- 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
- Sand Bay75
Bay · 2.3 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 75
- Red drum 74
- Atlantic croaker 72
5 kt NEL 5:40 PM · 0.7 ftH 11:37 PM · 3.0 ft
- Fillmans Creek74
Bay · 1.2 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 74
- Atlantic croaker 72
- Red drum 72
5 kt NEL 6:00 PM · 0.7 ftH 11:47 PM · 3.2 ft
- Ben Pilot Point74
Cape · 1.7 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 74
- Atlantic croaker 72
- Red drum 72
5 kt NEL 6:00 PM · 0.7 ftH 11:47 PM · 3.2 ft
- Big Bayou Point72
Cape · 0.2 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 72
- Common snook 71
- Florida pompano 66
5 kt NEL 6:28 PM · 0.7 ftH 12:18 AM · 3.1 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.