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Yellowfin tunaOff seasonBay · Florida
Big Starvation Cove
27.55°N · 80.33°W · Bay · Sebastian Inlet to Jupiter Inlet 0-20 nm
Species here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker76
- Spot74
- Crevalle jack71
- Atlantic tarpon70
- Summer flounder69
- Common snook68
- King mackerel66
- Red drum65
- Gray snapper64
- Florida pompano62
- Southern flounder62
- Weakfish60
- Spanish mackerel57
- Little tunny56
- Spotted seatrout53
- Black drum52
- Black sea bass52
- Cobia52
- Gray triggerfish49
- Red grouper49
- Red snapper49
- Wahoo49
- Greater amberjack48
- Sheepshead46
- Mahi-mahi44
- Bluefish35
- Sailfish35
- Yellowfin tuna35
- Gag grouper20
Best score today · 7 AM · Yellowfin tuna
- Now
- 359 AM EDT
- Best window
- 6-9 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Flooding0.9 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Big Starvation 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 · rolling from now
Conditions · 9 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
59Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.9 kn ebbWind & pressure
ECMWF
97Wind: 3 kt WSWPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
71Water temp: 86°F, warmLight: DawnSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 1.3 ftSeason & habitat · Yellowfin tuna
Species seasonality
44Off season · capped at 35Season: Off seasonHabitat: Prime structureDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: no rule on file
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Atlantic state waters (Nassau through Miami-Dade counties)
No rule for Yellowfin tuna is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with FWC before you keep a fish.
Species rules here
- Atlantic croaker Retention open (50 per day)
- Black drum Retention open (5 per day)
- Bluefish Retention open (3 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 (10 per day)
- Greater amberjack Retention open (1 per day)
- King mackerel Retention open (2 per day)
- Mahi-mahi Retention open (5 per day)
- Permit Retention open (2 per day)
- Red drum Catch & release (No retention)
- Red grouper Retention open (3 per day (3 Atlantic grouper and tilefish combined))
- Red snapper Check regulations
- Sailfish Retention open (1 per day (1 billfish combined))
- Sheepshead Retention open (8 per day)
- Snook Retention open (1 per day)
- Southern flounder Retention open (5 per day)
- Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
- Spot Retention open (50 per day)
- Spotted seatrout Retention open (2 per day)
- Summer flounder Retention open (5 per day)
- Tarpon Catch & release (No retention)
- Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)
Source: FWC · synced yesterday
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Yellowfin tuna is best here
Out of season for Yellowfin tuna · shoulder season starts in 6 weeks
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Big Starvation Cove
- Depth
- 1-4 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · ProtectedBay · flat bottom
- Season
- Off seasonYellowfin tuna
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 Starvation Cove
Big Starvation Cove is a bay in Sebastian Inlet to Jupiter Inlet 0-20 nm, Florida. Depth is 1-4 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 29 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, spot and crevalle jack. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, spot, crevalle jack and Atlantic tarpon, and shoulder season for Florida pompano, weakfish, Spanish mackerel and little tunny. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Spot peak from September through October. Crevalle jack peak from July through October.
Tackle & technique
- Yellowfin tuna
- Yellowfin feed in blue water along canyon edges, the shelf break, current edges, deepwater platforms and FADs, usually from the surface to about 300 feet. Troll ballyhoo, spreader bars and cedar plugs early in the day, then chunk butterfish or sardines, fish live hardtails, or drop jigs to marks. Around Gulf platforms and in the canyons the night bite on chunks and jigs is often better than the day.
- 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.
- Spot
- Spot school over mud and sand in bays, tidal creeks and channels and around piers and bridges, generally in less than 25 feet of water. Fish a two-hook bottom rig with small hooks and bits of bloodworm or shrimp, and move until you find a school. In fall the biggest fish run out of the sounds past piers and inlets, and the bite can go all day.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Round Island76
Bay · 0.9 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 76
- Spot 74
- Crevalle jack 71
3 kt WSWH 9:44 AM · 0.9 ftL 4:40 PM · 0.3 ft
- Blue Hole Creek76
Bay · 1.4 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 76
- Southern flounder 74
- Spot 74
3 kt WSWL 2:27 PM · 0.6 ftH 7:54 PM · 1.3 ft
- Parks Cove76
Bay · 1.4 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 76
- Spot 74
- Crevalle jack 68
3 kt WSWH 9:44 AM · 0.9 ftL 4:40 PM · 0.3 ft
- Blue Hole Point71
Cape · 0.6 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 71
- Spot 69
- Atlantic tarpon 67
3 kt WSWH 9:44 AM · 0.9 ftL 4:40 PM · 0.3 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.
