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Spanish mackerelRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker70
- Common snook67
- Gray snapper62
- Red drum62
- Atlantic tarpon61
- Florida pompano58
- Permit56
- Spanish mackerel56
- Southern flounder55
- Black drum54
- Crevalle jack54
- Gag grouper53
- Gray triggerfish50
- Red grouper50
- Red snapper50
- Spotted seatrout46
- Cobia45
- King mackerel45
- Greater amberjack44
- Sheepshead35
Best score today · 11 PM · Spanish mackerel
- Now
- 5612 PM EDT
- Best window
- 8 PM-12 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing1.6 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Lemon 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 · rolling from now
Conditions · 12 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
55Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.2 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 3 kt SSWPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
Open-Meteo Marine
65Water temp: 87°F, warmLight: OvercastSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.5 ftSeason & habitat · Spanish mackerel
Species seasonality
66Season: ShoulderHabitat: Structure unmappedDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Spanish mackerel
Retention open- Daily limit
- 15 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 12 in, fork length
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Beach or haul seine, cast net, hook and line, or spear. Open year-round.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Spanish 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)
- 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 Catch & release (No retention)
- Southern flounder Retention open (5 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 Spanish mackerel is best here
Shoulder season for Spanish mackerel · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Lemon Bay
- Depth
- 2-9 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonSpanish 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 Lemon Bay
Lemon Bay is a bay in Tampa Bay waters, Florida. Depth is 2-9 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, 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, Florida pompano, permit and Spanish mackerel. 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
- 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.
- 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
- Deer Creek74
Bend · 2.3 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 74
- Common snook 68
- Red drum 65
3 kt SSWL 6:47 PM · 0.4 ftH 1:35 AM · 1.3 ft
- Redfish Cove70
Bay · 2.5 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 70
- Common snook 67
- Gray snapper 62
3 kt SSWL 6:47 PM · 0.4 ftH 1:35 AM · 1.3 ft
- Point of Pines63
Cape · 2.8 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 63
- Common snook 62
- Gray snapper 56
3 kt SSWL 6:47 PM · 0.4 ftH 1:35 AM · 1.3 ft
- Cedar Point63
Cape · 3.4 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 63
- Common snook 62
- Gray snapper 56
3 kt SSWL 6:47 PM · 0.4 ftH 1:35 AM · 1.3 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.