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Gag grouperRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker69
- Common snook66
- Gray snapper65
- Atlantic tarpon62
- Red drum62
- Permit59
- Black drum58
- Crevalle jack56
- Gag grouper55
- Southern flounder55
- Gray triggerfish53
- Red grouper53
- Red snapper53
- Spanish mackerel51
- Greater amberjack48
- Spotted seatrout47
- King mackerel46
- Cobia42
- Florida pompano36
- Sheepshead35
Best score today · 11 PM · Gag grouper
- Now
- 554 PM EDT
- Best window
- 10 PM-12 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing1.6 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Big Bend Channel 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 · 4 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
100Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.2 kn ebbWind & pressure
ECMWF
78Wind: 0 kt NPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
53Water temp: 87°F, hotLight: Partly cloudySolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.1 ftSeason & habitat · Gag grouper
Species seasonality
54Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Gag grouper
Retention open- Daily limit
- 2 per day (4 Gulf grouper combined)
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 24 in, total length
- Season
- Sep 1 to Sep 30, 2026
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Changes
- Closed from Oct 1
- Other
- Private-vessel anglers need the State Reef Fish Angler designation. Charter captain and crew bag limit is zero. No more than 4 grouper combined per person per day. Reef fish gear rules apply. Land with head and fins intact. FWC set the 2026 Gulf state waters gag season to September 1 through 30 by executive order, matching the federal season. Excludes Monroe County.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Groupers, 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)
- 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 Gag grouper is best here
Shoulder season for Gag grouper · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Big Bend Channel
- Depth
- 10-40 ftSlope
- Structure
- Channel · Inner · Semi-exposedChannel · slope
- Season
- Shoulder seasonGag grouper
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 Bend Channel
Big Bend Channel is a channel in Tampa Bay waters, Florida. Depth is 10-40 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads channel, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, common snook and gray snapper. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, common snook, gray snapper and red drum, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, permit, black drum and crevalle jack. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Gray snapper peak from June through September.
Tackle & technique
- Gag grouper
- Gag hold on ledges, rock piles and wrecks, from 15 to 40 feet in the fall on Florida's Gulf coast out to 250 feet the rest of the year. Troll deep-diving plugs to find productive rocks, then anchor and drop or freeline live pinfish or pigfish on a strong circle hook. Keep the drag tight and turn the fish in the first few seconds or it will reach the rocks.
- 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.
- 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
- Alafia River Channel69
Channel · 1.9 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 69
- Common snook 66
- Gray snapper 64
0 kt NL 7:57 PM · 0.4 ftH 1:50 AM · 2.1 ft
- Hillsborough Channel69
Channel · 3.0 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 69
- Common snook 66
- Gray snapper 64
0 kt NL 7:14 PM · 0.4 ftH 1:18 AM · 2.4 ft
- Big Bend65
Bay · 2.2 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 65
- Common snook 65
- Gray snapper 64
0 kt NL 7:10 PM · 0.6 ftH 1:50 AM · 2.0 ft
- The Kitchen65
Bay · 2.8 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 65
- Red drum 65
- Common snook 61
0 kt NL 7:57 PM · 0.4 ftH 1:50 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.