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Black drumRetention openChannel · Florida
Fort Pierce Inlet Entrance Range
27.47°N · 80.28°W · Channel · Sebastian Inlet to Jupiter Inlet 0-20 nm
Species here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic tarpon82
- Common snook79
- Atlantic croaker75
- Crevalle jack74
- Gray snapper74
- Red drum73
- Summer flounder73
- Southern flounder71
- Spot70
- King mackerel67
- Spotted seatrout65
- Weakfish64
- Little tunny61
- Florida pompano60
- Spanish mackerel60
- Black drum59
- Black sea bass59
- Cobia53
- Greater amberjack53
- Sheepshead52
- Gray triggerfish51
- Red grouper51
- Red snapper51
- Wahoo49
- Mahi-mahi42
- Bluefish35
- Yellowfin tuna35
- Sailfish32
- Gag grouper20
Best score today · 9 AM · Black drum
- Now
- 598 PM EDT
- Best window
- 10 PM-12 AMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing2.9 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Fort Pierce Inlet Entrance Range 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 · 8 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
73Tide: EbbingCurrent: 1.4 kn floodWind & pressure
ECMWF
97Wind: 3 kt ENEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
60Water temp: 86°F, warmLight: DuskSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 1.1 ftSeason & habitat · Black drum
Species seasonality
70Season: ShoulderHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Atlantic state waters (Nassau through Miami-Dade counties)
Black drum
Retention open- Daily limit
- 5 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Slot 14 to 24 in, total length. One fish over 24 inches allowed, counted in the bag limit.
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- 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.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Black Drum, read Sep 13
Other species here
- Atlantic croaker Retention open (50 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 today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Black drum is best here
Shoulder season for Black drum · 18 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Fort Pierce Inlet Entrance Range
- Depth
- 15-35 ftSlope
- Structure
- Channel · Outer · ExposedChannel · slope
- Season
- Shoulder seasonBlack drum
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 Fort Pierce Inlet Entrance Range
Fort Pierce Inlet Entrance Range is a channel in Sebastian Inlet to Jupiter Inlet 0-20 nm, Florida. Depth is 15-35 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads channel, outer water and exposed.
Waterlands scores 29 species here; the best right now are Atlantic tarpon, common snook and Atlantic croaker. It is peak season now for Atlantic tarpon, common snook, Atlantic croaker and crevalle jack, and shoulder season for weakfish, little tunny, Florida pompano and Spanish mackerel. Atlantic tarpon peak from July through September. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October.
Tackle & technique
- Black drum
- Black drum root along the bottom around oyster reefs, bridge and pier pilings, channel edges and shallow mud flats. TPWD notes they rarely take artificials, so fish peeled shrimp, crab, clams or sand fleas on a bottom rig and let the fish load the rod before setting the hook. Big spawning schools gather near passes and bay mouths in late winter and spring, and in the Chesapeake and Delaware Bay the large fish show up on the shoals from April into June.
- 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.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Fort Pierce Inlet83
Bay · 0.4 mi
Top: Atlantic tarponPeak season- Atlantic tarpon 83
- Common snook 82
- Crevalle jack 78
3 kt ENEL 12:46 AM · 1.0 ftH 7:01 AM · 3.1 ft
- Dynamite Point72
Cape · 0.7 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 72
- Atlantic tarpon 72
- Atlantic croaker 67
3 kt ENEL 1:05 AM · 0.4 ftH 7:22 AM · 2.1 ft
- Boot Toe Point72
Cape · 1.1 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 72
- Atlantic tarpon 72
- Atlantic croaker 67
3 kt ENEL 1:05 AM · 0.4 ftH 7:22 AM · 2.1 ft
- Tucker Cove72
Bay · 1.1 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 72
- Common snook 72
- Atlantic tarpon 72
3 kt ENEL 1:05 AM · 0.4 ftH 7:22 AM · 2.1 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.