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King mackerelRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Red drum71
- Gray snapper66
- Common snook64
- Atlantic croaker63
- Atlantic tarpon58
- Spanish mackerel57
- Crevalle jack55
- Southern flounder55
- Gag grouper54
- Permit54
- Black drum53
- Florida pompano53
- Spotted seatrout53
- Gray triggerfish51
- Red grouper51
- Red snapper51
- King mackerel50
- Greater amberjack48
- Cobia47
- Sheepshead35
Best score today · 7 AM · King mackerel
- Now
- 508 PM EDT
- Best window
- 8-10 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Flooding1.3 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Howard Point 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 · 8 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
67Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.5 kn floodWind & pressure
ECMWF
85Wind: 2 kt NEPressure: FallingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
65Water temp: 86°F, hotLight: DuskSolunar: Near a majorSeas: 0.7 ftSeason & habitat · King mackerel
Species seasonality
49Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
King mackerel
Retention open- Daily limit
- 3 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 24 in, fork length
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Hook and line and spearing only. Open year-round.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: King Mackerel, 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)
- 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)
- 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 King mackerel is best here
Shoulder season for King mackerel · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Howard Point
- Depth
- 4-10 ftNearest water
- Structure
- Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonKing mackerel
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 Howard Point
Howard Point is a cape in Tampa Bay waters, Florida. Depth in the nearest water is 4-10 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are red drum, gray snapper and common snook. It is peak season now for red drum, gray snapper, common snook and Atlantic croaker, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, Spanish mackerel, crevalle jack and southern flounder. Red drum peak from September through November. Gray snapper peak from June through September. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October.
Tackle & technique
- King mackerel
- Kings roam from beaches and pier ends out to reefs, wrecks and ledges in 40 to 200 feet, usually feeding in the upper half of the water column. Slow-troll live menhaden, blue runners or cigar minnows on a light wire stinger rig, or pull spoons and ribbonfish past bait schools. Look for clean green water above 68 F with bait and birds on it.
- 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
- Clearwater Pass76
Channel · 2.1 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 76
- Atlantic croaker 72
- Common snook 72
2 kt NEH 4:47 AM · 2.7 ftL 1:59 PM · 0.8 ft
- Point Pleasant71
Cape · 0.0 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 71
- Gray snapper 66
- Common snook 64
2 kt NEH 5:15 AM · 2.5 ftL 2:49 PM · 0.6 ft
- Shell Point70
Cape · 1.2 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 70
- Gray snapper 64
- Atlantic croaker 63
2 kt NEH 6:06 AM · 2.5 ftL 3:31 PM · 0.6 ft
- McKay Point70
Cape · 2.2 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 70
- Gray snapper 64
- Atlantic croaker 63
2 kt NEH 6:06 AM · 2.5 ftL 3:31 PM · 0.6 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.