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Florida pompanoRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker72
- Common snook71
- Atlantic tarpon67
- Gray snapper67
- Red drum67
- Black drum61
- Permit60
- Crevalle jack59
- Gag grouper57
- Southern flounder57
- Gray triggerfish54
- Red grouper54
- Red snapper54
- Spanish mackerel54
- Spotted seatrout53
- King mackerel49
- Greater amberjack48
- Cobia45
- Florida pompano41
- Sheepshead35
Best score today · 10 PM · Florida pompano
- Now
- 414 PM EDT
- Best window
- 7 PM-12 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing0.6 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Devils Elbow 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
21Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.2 kn ebbWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 5 kt NEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
54Water temp: 87°F, warmLight: OvercastSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.4 ftSeason & habitat · Florida pompano
Species seasonality
53Season: 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
Devils Elbow
- Depth
- 3-15 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Channel · Inner · ProtectedChannel · flat bottom
- 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 Devils Elbow
Devils Elbow is a channel in Tampa Bay waters, Florida. Depth is 3-15 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads channel, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, common snook and Atlantic tarpon. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, common snook, gray snapper and red drum, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, black drum, permit and crevalle jack. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Atlantic tarpon peak from May through July.
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.
- 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
- Blind Pass74
Channel · 0.5 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 74
- Atlantic croaker 72
- Atlantic tarpon 68
5 kt NEL 5:42 PM · 0.4 ftH 12:26 AM · 1.8 ft
- Boca Ciega Bay70
Bay · 0.9 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 70
- Atlantic croaker 68
- Gray snapper 67
5 kt NEL 5:42 PM · 0.4 ftH 12:26 AM · 1.8 ft
- Long Bayou57
Bay · 2.7 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 57
- Atlantic croaker 56
- Common snook 55
5 kt NEH 11:30 PM · 1.9 ftL 3:31 AM · 1.6 ft
- Turtlecrawl Point55
Cape · 2.9 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 55
- Gray snapper 51
- Atlantic croaker 50
5 kt NEH 11:30 PM · 1.9 ftL 3:31 AM · 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.