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Florida pompanoRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all74
- Florida pompano74
- Spanish mackerel67
- Common snook64
- Red drum64
- Spotted seatrout62
- Black drum58
- Gray snapper53
- King mackerel53
- Sheepshead53
- Gray triggerfish49
- Red grouper49
- Atlantic croaker35
- Atlantic tarpon35
- Cobia35
- Crevalle jack35
- Permit35
- Gag grouper20
- Greater amberjack20
- Red snapper20
- Southern flounder20
Best score today · 6 PM · Red drum
- Now
- 746 AM EST
- Best window
- 5-8 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing2.0 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Boca Ciega Bay 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
Wednesday, Nov 11 · 9 PM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
88Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.5 kn floodWind & pressure
ECMWF
82Wind: 3 kt NNEPressure: FallingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
79Water temp: 78°F, primeLight: NightSolunar: Between periodsSeason & habitat · Spotted seatrout
Species seasonality
88Season: PeakHabitat: Structure unmappedDepth: In range
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 Closed (No retention)
- Gray snapper Retention open (5 per day (10 snapper combined))
- Gray triggerfish Retention open (1 per day)
- Greater amberjack Closed (No retention)
- 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 Closed (No retention)
- Sailfish Retention open (1 per day (1 billfish combined))
- Sheepshead Retention open (8 per day)
- Snook Retention open (1 per day)
- Southern flounder Closed (No retention)
- Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
- Spot Retention open
- Spotted seatrout Retention open (3 per day)
- Summer flounder Closed (No retention)
- Tarpon Catch & release (No retention)
- Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)
Source: FWC · synced yesterday
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Florida pompano is best here
Peak season for Florida pompano · 4 more weeks at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Boca Ciega Bay
- Depth
- 3-15 ftSlope
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · ProtectedBay · slope
- Season
- Peak 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 Boca Ciega Bay
Boca Ciega Bay is a bay in Tampa Bay waters, Florida. Depth is 3-15 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads bay, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are Florida pompano, Spanish mackerel and common snook. It is peak season now for Florida pompano, Spanish mackerel, red drum and spotted seatrout, and shoulder season for common snook, black drum, gray snapper and king mackerel. Florida pompano peak from March through May and from October through November. Spanish mackerel peak from April through May and from October through November. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October.
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.
- Spanish mackerel
- Spanish mackerel school along beaches and around inlets, jetties, piers and bridge-tunnel structures, and along tide rips in 5 to 40 feet of water once the water climbs above about 68 degrees F. Troll small spoons or cast metal jigs and retrieve fast, or look for birds diving on bait and cast into the school. FWC calls for a 30 to 60 pound monofilament leader because their teeth cut light line.
- 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
- Blind Pass76
Channel · 1.4 mi
Top: Florida pompanoPeak season- Florida pompano 76
- Spanish mackerel 71
- Common snook 68
4 kt NEL 2:20 PM · 0.3 ftH 9:26 PM · 1.6 ft
- Long Bayou75
Bay · 1.9 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 75
- Florida pompano 71
- Spotted seatrout 71
4 kt NEL 1:00 PM · 0.3 ftH 8:30 PM · 1.7 ft
- Turtlecrawl Point71
Cape · 2.2 mi
Top: Florida pompanoPeak season- Florida pompano 71
- Spanish mackerel 70
- Common snook 67
4 kt NEL 1:00 PM · 0.3 ftH 8:30 PM · 1.7 ft
- Devils Elbow70
Channel · 0.9 mi
Top: Florida pompanoPeak season- Florida pompano 70
- Common snook 65
- Red drum 65
4 kt NEL 2:20 PM · 0.3 ftH 9:26 PM · 1.6 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.