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Atlantic tarponCatch & releaseCape · Florida
Mosquito Point
25.14°N · 80.78°W · Cape · Florida Bay including Barnes Sound, Blackwater Sound, and Buttonwood Sound
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 10 AM · Common snook
- Now
- 599 PM EDT
- Best window
- 11 PM-12 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing0.7 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Mosquito Point 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 · 9 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
31Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.2 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
91Wind: 2 kt EPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
Open-Meteo Marine
73Water temp: 87°F, warmLight: NightSolunar: Near a majorSeas: 1.1 ftSeason & habitat · Common snook
Species seasonality
75Season: PeakHabitat: Poor fitDepth: In rangeRegulations: Catch & release
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Monroe County state waters (Florida Keys)
Tarpon
Catch & release- Daily limit
- No retention
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Not published
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Tarpon over 40 inches must stay in the water. Special gear rules apply year-round in Boca Grande Pass. Hook and line only. No snagging, snatch hooking, spearing, or multiple hooks with natural bait. Applies in state and federal waters of the Gulf and Atlantic.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Tarpon, 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 Closed (No retention)
- 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 Check regulations
- Permit Retention open (1 per day)
- Red drum Retention open (1 per day)
- Red grouper Retention open (3 per day (3 Atlantic grouper and tilefish 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)
- Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)
Source: FWC · synced today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Atlantic tarpon is best here
Shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon · 22 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Mosquito Point
- Depth
- 1-3 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonAtlantic tarpon
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 Mosquito Point
Mosquito Point is a cape in Florida Bay including Barnes Sound, Blackwater Sound, and Buttonwood Sound. Depth is 1-3 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 18 species here; the best right now are Atlantic tarpon, common snook and permit. It is peak season now for common snook and crevalle jack, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, permit, red drum and bonefish. Atlantic tarpon peak from March through June. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through November. Permit peak from March through June.
Tackle & technique
- Atlantic tarpon
- Tarpon roll along beaches, in passes and channels, and under bridges from late spring through fall, and in South Florida some fish stay through winter in warm canals and backcountry rivers. Live crabs, mullet or pinfish drifted through a pass on the outgoing tide, or a fly or soft plastic cast ahead of a rolling string of fish, are the main approaches. Use a long heavy leader, bow to the jumps, and keep big fish in the water for release.
- 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.
- Permit
- Permit cruise flat edges and channels in 2 to 6 feet of water in the Keys and Biscayne Bay, and school over wrecks and reefs in 30 to 120 feet, especially during the spring spawn. A live or artificial crab is the standard bait, cast ahead of a tailing fish on the flats or dropped to a school on a wreck. They spook easily in shallow water, so good light and a long, quiet cast are needed.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Rankin Bight59
Bay · 1.0 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 59
- Atlantic tarpon 59
- Permit 57
2 kt EL 9:32 PM · 0.7 ftH 2:14 AM · 2.3 ft
- Shark Point59
Cape · 1.4 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 59
- Atlantic tarpon 59
- Permit 55
2 kt EL 9:32 PM · 0.7 ftH 2:14 AM · 2.3 ft
- Santini Bight59
Bay · 1.6 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 59
- Atlantic tarpon 59
- Permit 57
2 kt EL 9:32 PM · 0.7 ftH 2:14 AM · 2.3 ft
- Garfield Bight59
Bay · 3.0 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 59
- Atlantic tarpon 59
- Permit 57
2 kt EL 9:32 PM · 0.7 ftH 2:14 AM · 2.3 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.