Waterlands

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Black sea bassShoulder season

Bay · Florida

Hooker Cove

27.19°N · 80.21°W · Bay · Sebastian Inlet to Jupiter Inlet 0-20 nm

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Best score today · 11 AM · Black sea bass

77/100Great
Now
615 PM EDT
Best window
5 PM-12 AMHigh slack
Tide now
Flooding0.9 ft ▲

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 5 PM · now

Time5PNOW
Score61Good
Tide0.9 ft ▲Flooding
Current0.2 knmodeled · toward WNW
Wind4 kn Egusts 10 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.2 ft · 7 s
Air temp80°Warm
WeatherOvercast94% chance of rain
Water86°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Atlantic state waters (Nassau through Miami-Dade counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Black sea bass 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)

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Black sea bass is best here

Shoulder season for Black sea bass · 1 more week at shoulder

Black sea bass season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Black sea bass · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Black sea bass in Florida

Spot profile

Hooker Cove

Depth
4-15 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bay · Inner · ProtectedBay · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonBlack sea bass

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 Hooker Cove

Hooker Cove is a bay in Sebastian Inlet to Jupiter Inlet 0-20 nm, Florida. Depth is 4-15 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, crevalle jack and spot. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, crevalle jack, spot and Atlantic tarpon, and shoulder season for black sea bass, weakfish, little tunny and gray triggerfish. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Crevalle jack peak from July through October. Spot peak from September through October.

Tackle & technique

Black sea bass
Black sea bass hold tight to wrecks, reefs, rock piles and jetties, from 15 feet inshore in late spring to well over 100 feet on offshore wrecks in late fall. Anchor or drift right over the structure and fish a two-hook high-low rig with squid or clam, or bounce a small jig on the bottom. The biggest males sit on the highest relief.
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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Hoggs Cove

    Bay · 1.9 mi

    75
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 75
    • Crevalle jack 74
    • Spot 73

    4 kt EH 8:58 PM · 1.4 ftL 3:27 AM · 0.2 ft

  • Steele Point

    Cape · 0.7 mi

    72
    Top: Atlantic tarponPeak season
    • Atlantic tarpon 72
    • Common snook 71
    • Atlantic croaker 70

    4 kt EH 7:51 PM · 1.5 ftL 2:09 AM · 0.3 ft

  • Sewall Point

    Cape · 1.3 mi

    72
    Top: Atlantic tarponPeak season
    • Atlantic tarpon 72
    • Common snook 71
    • Atlantic croaker 70

    4 kt EH 7:51 PM · 1.5 ftL 2:09 AM · 0.3 ft

  • Baker Point

    Cape · 2.3 mi

    70
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 70
    • Common snook 69
    • Atlantic tarpon 69

    4 kt EH 6:14 PM · 3.5 ftL 12:29 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.