UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN
SheepsheadRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Florida pompano67
- Common snook63
- Red drum63
- Spotted seatrout62
- Spanish mackerel60
- Black drum58
- King mackerel54
- Gray snapper52
- Sheepshead52
- Gray triggerfish50
- Red grouper50
- Atlantic croaker35
- Atlantic tarpon35
- Cobia35
- Crevalle jack35
- Permit35
- Gag grouper20
- Greater amberjack20
- Red snapper20
- Southern flounder20
Best score today · 5 PM · Sheepshead
- Now
- 528 PM EST
- Best window
- 10 PM-12 AMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Flooding2.3 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Malone 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
Wednesday, Nov 4 · 5 PM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
96Tide: FloodingCurrent: 1.1 kn floodWind & pressure
ECMWF
94Wind: 3 kt WSWPressure: FallingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
82Water temp: 76°F, warmLight: DuskSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.8 ftSeason & habitat · Sheepshead
Species seasonality
48Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: In range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Sheepshead
Retention open- Daily limit
- 8 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 12 in, total length
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- State rules extend into federal waters. Special rules apply in Biscayne National Park. Hook and line, cast net, seine, spear or gig. No multiple hooks with natural bait. No snatching. Open year-round. A 50-fish vessel limit applies in March and April.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Sheepshead, 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 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))
- 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 today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Sheepshead is best here
Shoulder season for Sheepshead · 12 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Malone Point
- Depth
- 2-6 ftNearest water
- Structure
- Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonSheepshead
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 Malone Point
Malone Point is a cape in Tampa Bay waters, Florida. Depth in the nearest water is 2-6 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are Florida pompano, common snook and red drum. It is peak season now for Florida pompano, red drum, spotted seatrout and Spanish mackerel, and shoulder season for common snook, black drum, king mackerel and gray snapper. Florida pompano peak from March through May and from October through November. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Red drum peak from September through November.
Tackle & technique
- Sheepshead
- Sheepshead graze barnacles and crabs off pilings, jetty rocks, bridge supports, oyster bars and nearshore reefs, from a few feet deep out to about 50 feet. Drop a fiddler crab, sand flea or piece of shrimp on a small, strong hook straight down next to the structure with just enough weight to hold bottom. The bite is a light tap, so keep the line tight and set the hook fast.
- 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.
- 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
- Scharrer Bayou70
Bay · 0.7 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 70
- Florida pompano 67
- Spotted seatrout 67
6 kt EL 2:26 AM · 1.1 ftH 8:29 AM · 2.6 ft
- Dunedin Channel69
Channel · 0.4 mi
Top: Spotted seatroutPeak season- Spotted seatrout 69
- Common snook 68
- Red drum 68
6 kt EL 2:26 AM · 1.1 ftH 8:29 AM · 2.6 ft
- Scharrer Cut69
Channel · 0.5 mi
Top: Spotted seatroutPeak season- Spotted seatrout 69
- Common snook 68
- Red drum 68
6 kt EL 2:26 AM · 1.1 ftH 8:29 AM · 2.6 ft
- Redfish Point67
Cape · 0.5 mi
Top: Florida pompanoPeak season- Florida pompano 67
- Common snook 63
- Red drum 63
6 kt EL 2:26 AM · 1.1 ftH 8:29 AM · 2.6 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.