Waterlands

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Southern flounderRetention open

Bar · Florida

Crystal Reef

28.91°N · 82.75°W · Bar · Coastal waters from Tarpon Springs to Suwannee River FL out 20 NM

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 11 PM · Southern flounder

76/100Great
Now
457 AM EDT
Best window
9 PM-12 AMFlood tide
Tide now
Low1.2 ft

Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine

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14-day forecast

Best days to fish

Best: Sun · 82

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 7 AM · now

Time7ANOW
Score45Good
Tide1.2 ftLow
Current0.1 knmodeled · toward N
Wind5 kn NNEgusts 8 · steady
Sea stateCalm0.3 ft · 5 s
Air temp74°Warm
WeatherMostly cloudy63% cloud
Water86°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

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 Retention open (1 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)
Always check with FWC ↗Fishing license ↗

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

Southern flounder season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Southern flounder · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Southern flounder in Florida →

Spot profile

Crystal Reef

Depth
9-10 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Reef · Outer · Semi-exposedReef · 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 Crystal Reef

Crystal Reef is a bar in Coastal waters from Tarpon Springs to Suwannee River FL out 20 NM, Florida. Depth is 9-10 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads reef, outer water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 24 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, common snook and gray snapper. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, common snook, gray snapper and red drum, and shoulder season for gag grouper, Spanish mackerel, Atlantic tarpon and black drum. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Gray snapper peak from June through September.

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

View all on map →
  • Tin Pan Gap

    Channel · 2.5 mi

    64
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 64
    • Atlantic croaker 63
    • Red drum 62

    5 kt NNEH 12:05 PM · 4.0 ftL 7:34 PM · 0.7 ft

  • Mangrove Point

    Cape · 2.8 mi

    61
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 61
    • Atlantic croaker 58
    • Red drum 58

    4 kt NEH 12:48 PM · 3.3 ftL 7:48 PM · 0.3 ft

  • Crystal Bay

    Bay · 2.3 mi

    60
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 60
    • Atlantic croaker 58
    • Red drum 58

    5 kt NNEH 1:01 PM · 2.7 ftL 8:19 PM · 0.2 ft

  • Black Point

    Cape · 3.0 mi

    60
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 60
    • Atlantic croaker 58
    • Red drum 58

    5 kt NNEH 1:01 PM · 2.7 ftL 8:19 PM · 0.2 ft

Open in the tide map

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.