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Florida pompanoRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
Best score today · 6 AM · Florida pompano
- Now
- 431 PM CDT
- Best window
- 6 PM-12 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing0.8 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Lands End 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 · 1 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
40Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.7 kn ebbWind & pressure
ECMWF
95Wind: 3 kt ENEPressure: FallingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
54Water temp: 86°F, warmLight: Bright sunSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.7 ftSeason & habitat · Florida pompano
Species seasonality
50Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Florida pompano
Retention open- Daily limit
- 6 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 11 in, fork length
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Special rules apply in Biscayne National Park. Hook and line, cast net, and beach or haul seine only. No multiple hooks with natural bait. No snatching. Open year-round in state and federal waters.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Permit, Florida pompano and African pompano, 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
- Gag grouper Retention open (2 per day (4 Gulf grouper combined))
- 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 Retention open (10 per day)
- Permit Retention open (2 per day)
- Red drum Retention open (1 per day)
- Red grouper Retention open (2 per day (4 Gulf grouper 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 Retention open (1 per day)
- 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)
- Tarpon Catch & release (No retention)
- Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)
Source: FWC · synced today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Florida pompano is best here
Shoulder season for Florida pompano · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Lands End
- Depth
- 1-20 ftSlope
- Structure
- Point · Inner · ProtectedPoint · slope
- Season
- Shoulder seasonFlorida pompano
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 Lands End
Lands End is a cape in St. Andrews Bay Waterways, Florida. Depth is 1-20 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads point, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 19 species here; the best right now are red drum, gray snapper and Atlantic croaker. It is peak season now for red drum, gray snapper and Atlantic croaker, and shoulder season for permit, Atlantic tarpon, crevalle jack and gag grouper. Red drum peak from September through November. Gray snapper peak from June through September. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September.
Tackle & technique
- Florida pompano
- Pompano feed on sand fleas and coquina clams in the trough between the beach and the first sandbar, and around the sandy edges of passes, inlets and bridges. Surf anglers fish a two-hook pompano rig with sand fleas, clams or shrimp, while boat and bridge anglers bounce small jigs along the bottom. The runs follow water temperature, heading north in spring and south in fall as the water cools.
- Red drum
- Redfish feed on shallow grass flats, oyster bars and marsh edges, often in 1 to 4 feet of water, and drop into channels, deep holes and tidal creeks when the water turns very hot or cold. Work a live shrimp under a popping cork or a soft plastic along the grass line on a rising tide, then fish creek mouths and drains as the tide falls. Bull reds over 30 inches school in the surf, passes and jetties in late summer and fall, where cut mullet or a live crab on the bottom is the standard approach.
- Gray snapper
- Mangrove snapper hold tight to mangrove roots, bridge pilings, jetties and reef ledges, from a few feet deep inshore to 150 feet offshore. Chum to pull them out of cover, then freeline or lightly weight a live shrimp or pilchard on fluorocarbon leader, since they shy away from heavy line in clear water. The bite improves at dusk and after dark.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Fred Bayou76
Bay · 3.7 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 76
- Atlantic croaker 71
- Gray snapper 68
3 kt ENEL 4:51 PM · 0.5 ftH 5:00 AM · 2.1 ft
- Smack Bayou70
Bay · 3.6 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 70
- Atlantic croaker 66
- Gray snapper 61
5 kt NEL 2:54 PM · 0.4 ftH 2:59 AM · 1.8 ft
- Military Point69
Cape · 3.5 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 69
- Gray snapper 68
- Atlantic croaker 66
5 kt NEL 4:51 PM · 0.5 ftH 5:00 AM · 2.1 ft
- Palmetto Point65
Cape · 3.0 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 65
- Gray snapper 63
- Atlantic croaker 61
3 kt ENEL 2:54 PM · 0.4 ftH 2:59 AM · 1.8 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.
