Waterlands

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Spanish mackerelRetention open

Channel · Florida

Mandalay Channel

27.99°N · 82.82°W · Channel · Tampa Bay waters

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Best score today · 8 PM · Spanish mackerel

81/100Great
Now
599 PM EDT
Best window
9 PM-12 AMFlood tide
Tide now
Flooding2.0 ft ▲

Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine

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14-day forecast

Best days to fish

Best: Tue · 86

24-hour conditions

Wednesday, Sep 23 · 8 PM

Time8P
Score64Good
Tide1.6 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentFlood1.3 kn · toward S
Wind4 kn ENEgusts 12 · steady
Sea stateLight chop0.7 ft · 3 s
Air temp77°Warm
WeatherClear96% chance of rain
Water87°FBias corrected

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

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 Retention open (1 per day)
  • 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)
Always check with FWC ↗Fishing license ↗

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

Spanish mackerel season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Spanish mackerel · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Spanish mackerel in Florida →

Spot profile

Mandalay Channel

Depth
3-10 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Channel · Inner · ProtectedChannel · 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 Mandalay Channel

Mandalay Channel is a channel in Tampa Bay waters, Florida. Depth is 3-10 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads channel, inner water and protected.

Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are common snook, Atlantic tarpon and gray snapper. It is peak season now for common snook, gray snapper, red drum and Atlantic croaker, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, permit, southern flounder and crevalle jack. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Atlantic tarpon peak from May through July. 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.
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.
Atlantic tarpon
Tarpon roll along beaches, in passes and channels, and under bridges from late spring through fall, and in South Florida some fish stay through winter in warm canals and backcountry rivers. Live crabs, mullet or pinfish drifted through a pass on the outgoing tide, or a fly or soft plastic cast ahead of a rolling string of fish, are the main approaches. Use a long heavy leader, bow to the jumps, and keep big fish in the water for release.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

View all on map →
  • Pope Channel

    Channel · 0.9 mi

    78
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 78
    • Gray snapper 74
    • Atlantic tarpon 74

    5 kt ENEH 11:03 PM · 2.4 ftL 4:01 AM · 1.6 ft

  • Clearwater Harbor

    Bay · 1.0 mi

    78
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 78
    • Gray snapper 75
    • Atlantic croaker 70

    5 kt ENEH 11:03 PM · 2.4 ftL 4:01 AM · 1.6 ft

  • Clearwater Bay

    Bay · 1.0 mi

    77
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 77
    • Gray snapper 74
    • Red drum 72

    5 kt ENEH 11:03 PM · 2.4 ftL 4:01 AM · 1.6 ft

  • Malone Point

    Cape · 1.3 mi

    73
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 73
    • Gray snapper 69
    • Red drum 67

    5 kt ENEH 11:29 PM · 2.4 ftL 4:41 AM · 1.5 ft

Open in the tide map

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.