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Spanish mackerelRetention openBay · Florida
Bird Key Bank
24.62°N · 82.89°W · Bay · Gulf of America including Dry Tortugas and Rebecca Shoal Channel
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 7 PM · Spanish mackerel
- Now
- 356 PM EDT
- Best window
- 6-9 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Flooding1.1 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Bird Key Bank 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 · 6 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
76Tide: FloodingCurrent: SlackWind & pressure
ECMWF
94Wind: 2 kt WPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
Open-Meteo Marine
69Water temp: 88°F, warmLight: DuskSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.7 ftSeason & habitat · Spanish mackerel
Species seasonality
42Off season · capped at 35Season: Off seasonHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Monroe County state waters (Florida Keys)
Spanish mackerel
Retention open- Daily limit
- 15 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 12 in, fork length
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Beach or haul seine, cast net, hook and line, or spear. Open year-round.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Spanish Mackerel, 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)
- 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 today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Spanish mackerel is best here
Out of season for Spanish mackerel · shoulder season starts in 2 weeks
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Bird Key Bank
- Depth
- 20-25 ft
- Structure
- Bank · Outer · Exposed
- Season
- Off seasonSpanish mackerel
NOAA NCEI DEM, sampled Sep 13 on a 464 m grid. Depths are feet below mean sea level, not chart datum (MLLW), so they can differ from a chart by a few feet. Not for navigation.
About this spot
Fishing Bird Key Bank
Bird Key Bank is a bay in Gulf of America including Dry Tortugas and Rebecca Shoal Channel, Florida. Depth is 20-25 ft. Its profile reads bank, outer water and exposed.
Waterlands scores 18 species here; the best right now are crevalle jack, common snook and Atlantic tarpon. It is peak season now for crevalle jack and common snook, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, red grouper, permit and gray snapper. Crevalle jack peak from April through May and from September through November. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through November. Atlantic tarpon peak from March through June.
Tackle & technique
- 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.
- Crevalle jack
- Jacks roam in schools through inlets, passes, bays, river mouths and along beaches, pushing bait to the surface, and big fish also hold on nearshore reefs and wrecks. Watch for birds and surface blowups, then cast a popper, a spoon or a bucktail into the school and retrieve fast. Bring heavy spinning tackle, because a jack over 15 pounds runs hard and fights for a long time.
- 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
- Bird Key Harbor76
Bay · 0.4 mi
Top: Crevalle jackPeak season- Crevalle jack 76
- Common snook 75
- Atlantic tarpon 68
2 kt WH 9:38 PM · 1.6 ftL 2:56 AM · 1.1 ft
- Bush Key Shoal70
Bar · 1.6 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 70
- Crevalle jack 69
- Atlantic tarpon 69
3 kt WH 9:38 PM · 1.6 ftL 2:56 AM · 1.1 ft
- Sawa Rock69
Bar · 2.2 mi
Top: Crevalle jackPeak season- Crevalle jack 69
- Permit 69
- Atlantic tarpon 69
3 kt WH 9:38 PM · 1.6 ftL 2:56 AM · 1.1 ft
- White Shoal68
Bar · 1.6 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 68
- Crevalle jack 66
- Atlantic tarpon 65
3 kt WNWH 9:38 PM · 1.4 ftL 2:34 AM · 0.9 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.